Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secrets

He was expecting a letter of credit from the Society to have already arrived, but it hadn't, and it didn't. In fact, subsequent letters from the Home Office of the Society didn't even mention the expected money. Hudson was able to ease the financial strain by sub-leasing half the house to an American missionary family, but that left only three rooms for the Parkers, their three young children, and himself. Dr. Parker went regularly with Hudson to evangelize in the city and surrounding villages. At home, the men devoted hours every day to the study of Chinese, but the lack of privacy and the lack of provisions proved both trying and irritating. Hudson, who for months had been exceedingly patient and understanding about his own financial straits, wrote an indignant letter to the Society on behalf of the Parkers, in which he said, I trust you will not deem it unkind or disrespectful of me to write thus, for though I feel these things and feel them keenly, were it not for the sake of others and the good of the Society, I would pass over them in silence. To do this, however, would be unfaithfulness on my part, for not only is it morally wrong and thoughtless in the extreme to act as the Society has acted towards Dr. Parker, but you must surely see that men who can quadruple their salary by professional practice or double it by taking a clerk's birth will not be likely, if they find themselves totally unprovided for, to continue in the service of the Society. I do not make these remarks with respect to Dr. Parker, who seems thoroughly devoted to the work and by his spirit has encouraged me not a little, but they are true nonetheless. And I may add that a vacant post at 200 pounds a year, the whole duties of which would not occupy two hours in the evening, did look inviting to me at a time when I had been obliged to incur a responsibility of 120 pounds for rent, and the resolution upon my last letter to the committee informed me that missionaries drawing more than this was authorized and would only have their bills honored by the Society. Dr. Parker arrived on Monday a week ago today, calling forth true gratitude to God for deliverance from the many dangers that had beset their path. Of course, he found our half of the house nearly empty, as my few things did not go far in furnishing. The other missionaries, when they discovered the lack of preparation, blamed me very much. Could I tell them that having paid nearly 20 pounds for rent, I had only three dollars left, a sum not sufficient to purchase provisions for a week at the present high rate of prices? The weather is now exceedingly cold, and not having been led to expect it, the Parkers needed an immediate supply of warm clothing. Beds and other articles of furniture were also necessary, as well as food and firing, all of which run into a considerable sum. Though he has said little, I am sure Dr. Parker has felt it keenly. I do trust that you will avoid such occurrences in the future, and that your missionaries will be spared unnecessary sufferings. Throughout his first difficult months in China, made so much more difficult by the lack of consideration and the bureaucratic ineptitude within his mission, Hudson avoided a spirit of bitterness. In fact, since several of the secretaries had become close friends and had shared such meaningful spiritual fellowship with him before he left England, Hudson actually missed them and longed for their company. But he also longed for some way to effectively communicate the needs of missionaries to supporters back home who couldn't imagine their circumstances. Those long days of frustration taught him much about how a mission needed to be run, and as seen in a letter to his sister Amelia, he tried to find the good in a bad situation. You ask how I get over my troubles? This is the way. I take them to the Lord. Since writing the above, I've been reading my evening portion, Psalm 72 to 74. Read them and see how applicable they are. I don't know how it is, but I can seldom read scripture now without tears of joy and gratitude. I see that to be as I am, and have been since my arrival, has really been more conducive to improvement and progress than any other position would have been, though in many respects it has been painful and far from what I should myself have chosen. Oh, for more implicit reliance on the wisdom and love of God. He would soon need it because the young missionaries' troubles were going to get worse. The year, 1855. Perhaps the most surprising and impressive aspect of Hudson Taylor's first two years in China was the way he threw himself into pioneer missionary travel. Here he was, alone, a mere boy, barely into his twenties, in a country unimaginably different from home, still learning the language and with virtually no financial resources. A violent civil war raged all around, often inside of his residence, and because foreigners had at one time or another supported both sides in the ongoing revolution, Westerners were hated by many Chinese and universally viewed with suspicion. Yet, despite these circumstances, Hudson Taylor embarked on no less than ten missionary journeys in those first two years, sometimes in company with other missionaries, but several times traveling by himself. Each trip was a tribute to his spiritual courage and his physical endurance. North, South, and West of Shanghai stretched a populous region, reachable through an intricate network of seemingly endless waterways. Junks, small Chinese sailing vessels, were plentiful. They afforded shelter of a sort at night, as well as transportation by day. And boat travelers didn't have to depend on the inconvenient, dangerous, and primitive Chinese inns. Simple cooking arrangements aboard the junks supplied food for the boatsman's family, the crew, and guests. Conditions were crude. The beds were just wooden boards, and the tiny windows were often at the level of the floor. But passengers could lie down or sit on their bedding when it was not possible to stand upright. Though travel was slow and depended on tides and weather, millions of people were accessible on shore in city after city, town after town. New villages were never out of sight as the junks sailed slowly along. Most of them had never been visited by a foreigner. Even fewer had heard the Christian gospel. This was what drew Hudson Taylor, who longed to follow Jesus' example by preaching throughout the countryside. He felt the same must Jesus had expressed centuries before, when he said, I must work the works of him that sent me. And again, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also. Other sheep I have, them also I must bring. It was not long to minister in the crowded streets of Shanghai. Others were already doing that to some extent. His heart was burdened with a sense of responsibility for those beyond, those who had never even heard the gospel of Christ, and who would never hear unless an outside messenger brought them the message. So nothing held him back, not winter cold or summer heat or deadly disease. Hudson was not even daunted by the perils of war, which not only endangered the lives of any European, but could at any time cut him off from return to the comparative safety of the foreign settlement in Shanghai. Before Dr. Parker arrived and in the time right afterwards, foreigners made many excursions to places within 10 or 15 miles of Shanghai. On similar day trips during the first three months, the new colleagues were together. Taylor and Parker distributed 1,800 New Testaments and scripture portions, in addition to 2,000 explanatory books and tracts. These were carefully placed only with those who could read, and since the majority of the people were illiterate, the message of the books was carefully explained to the constantly changing crowds. Then, beginning in winter, the missionary team took four extended journeys from January to March, in spite of zero-degree weather. It seemed that everywhere they stepped ashore, the two young missionaries automatically drew a crowd, as much to gawk at the strange-looking men in their even stranger-looking western clothes, as to listen to their teachings. On more than one occasion, Taylor and Parker were threatened by hostile crowds. They were once taken captive by a band of militia who wanted to kill them, but when the local magistrate heard their message, he ordered that they be freed and given safe conduct to travel and preach in his city. The welcome at most places was far more positive. Initial curiosity at the sight of the foreigners was quickly replaced by genuine interest and friendliness, and there was usually such an open response to their preaching that they had no trouble giving away thousands more Chinese New Testaments and supplemental tracts and books to those who wanted to learn more about this Jesus that they talked about. So the young missionaries didn't know what to make of the strange response they received on a March trip to Kaiting, a city north and west of Shanghai, up Suzhou Creek. As Dr. Parker reported, even grown men took refuge in their houses as we drew near, hastily shutting the doors, to which, however, they crowded to look after us as soon as we had passed. Realizing that the people of this city not only had never seen foreigners, but had heard fearful tales about them, the two missionaries walked about openly so they could be seen easily. They told everyone who would listen to them that they were physicians who would gladly, and free of charge, examine and treat patients the next day. Word quickly spread that these men were doers of good deeds, and a still fearful crowd began to follow them about the city at a distance. Before long, the crowds had grown so large that shop fronts were in danger, and some merchandise displayed outside was getting trampled. The missionaries had no choice but to seek out more open sections of the city so as not to annoy the shopkeepers and other business people. Dr. Parker wrote about the events of the next morning. Long before breakfast, the banks of the river were crowded with persons desiring medical aid. After working hard until 3 p.m., finding we could not possibly see them all, Mr. Taylor selected the more urgent cases and brought them on board the boat. No sooner were those attended to than we were taken to see patients in their own homes who were unable to come to us, and were much gratified to find that we had access to, and were welcomed in, some of the very houses whose doors had been shut against us the day before. From that day on, they met nothing but friendliness in that city, and when they preached a parting message in a temple near the city's west gate, many people asked them to stay. But the missionaries journeyed on. Everywhere they went, people wanted to know more. Hudson was just overwhelmed and challenged by the opportunity and the need that they witnessed. From temple-crowned hilltops and the heights of ancient pagodas, he would look down upon cities and towns and villages where the homes of millions of people were in sight. Men, women, and children, who had never heard the name of the one he had come to tell about, were ready to listen. There was so much to be done, so many people to reach. No sooner would one journey be completed than he would begin preparing for the next. In April, on a journey he took with Mr. Burden, his missionary friend, whose wife had died the year before, he found the river of Tsong Ming on an island in the Yantze River particularly receptive. They were invited to speak in four of the city's largest temples, much like the missionaries of the New Testament. And in the temple of the city god, Hudson set up a temporary clinic in a side room to care for patients while Burden kept the crowd occupied with books and preaching in the open courtyard. Only when his friend's voice gave out did Hudson quit doctoring and take over the preaching. Since he wasn't as tall as his friend, he climbed atop one of the temple's large brass incense vases and began to address the crowd. He wrote about the experience. At the lowest computation, five or six hundred persons must have been present, and I do not think it would be over the mark to say a thousand. As they quieted down, I addressed them at the top of my voice, and the more orderly, attentive audience in the open air one could not wish to see. It was most encouraging to hear one and another call out, as they frequently did when something said met with their approval. Heartening response during each trip made Hudson all the more excited about the next. So he continued his inland trips during the sweltering months of May, June, August, and September. Out among the crowds all day and in boats that had to be closed at night because of river thieves, there was little relief from the distressing heat. Yet even that didn't slow his pace. During May alone, he traveled for twenty-five days during which he preached in fifty-eight different cities, fifty-one of which had never been visited by a Protestant missionary. During this time, the Civil War reached a major turning point, as Shanghai finally fell before the imperial government forces. Hudson Taylor was traveling at the time with older missionaries toward Suzhou's lake. They had only been gone a few days when, looking back toward Shanghai from the top of a hill, they saw so much smoke they knew it could mean just one thing. Shanghai was in flames. Worried for the safety of the families and friends they'd left behind in the foreign settlement, the group set out at once to return to the city. Even before they reached Shanghai itself, their fears were confirmed by fleeing rebels who begged for their protection. But there was nothing Hudson or his friends could do to help them. In fact, the men were quickly captured by imperial forces and beheaded before the missionaries' eyes. Hurrying on toward the foreign settlement with growing apprehension, they witnessed more evidence of terrible destruction wherever they turned. But upon finally reaching the walls of the foreign settlement itself, they were relieved to find it just as they had left it. Perhaps because the imperialist troops were satiated by the slaughter they inflicted on the rebels and the native population of Shanghai, they were too exultant over their conquest to pay much attention to the foreigners. Hudson Taylor wrote home in this report, Shanghai is now in peace, but it is like the peace of death. Two thousand people at the very least have perished, and the torture some of the victims have undergone cannot be exceeded by the worst barbarities of the Inquisition. The city is a little more than a mass of ruins, and many of the wretched objects who survive are piteous to behold. But the worst of the danger was over. Hudson Taylor and his colleagues now gave themselves to caring for the spiritual and physical needs of Shanghai's survivors, while they waited anxiously for the reply of their society to the suggestions for more settled work. Having seen the opportunities and the needs firsthand, Hudson and the Parkers prayed, asking God for a strategy that would make them most useful in China. They concluded that their mission needed to purchase land in Shanghai. On that day they should build medical facilities for Dr. Parker to establish a practice, and also a permanent base from which they could launch more itinerant evangelism ventures inland. So, after much discussion and prayer, they wrote to the secretaries requesting the necessary money. With the fall of Shanghai to the imperialists, the timing became even more crucial. Now that the siege had ended and rebuilding had begun, the local economy was set to take off. Thousands of Chinese opportunists began pouring into the city from the surrounding region. Their presence, plus a new influx of like-minded foreigners, sent prices soaring once again. Months passed as the missionaries waited for word on the request. The heat of the summer, meanwhile, was overpowering in the crowded quarters. A brief visit to the great coastal city of Ningpo, over a hundred miles to the south, opened up an appealing alternative to their uncertain situation in Shanghai. Several missionary groups in that city, sensing the need for a hospital to supplement their otherwise effective ministries, proposed that Dr. Parker move to that city to establish a medical work. The different agencies represented there even pledged the financial support needed for Dr. Parker to get started to Ningpo. Still, Hudson and the Parkers awaited word on their proposal for establishing a permanent mission headquarters in Shanghai. The need for an answer became even more crucial as they received notice that the house they were sharing with another family would be needed shortly for members of the mission to which it belonged. And still, there were no other rooms for rent anywhere in the settlement or the city. Finally, the answer came. But what a discouraging answer it was. The committee had made a firm decision. They said their organization was philosophically opposed to spending money on buildings in the ports because they saw that their mission and that of their workers to be the evangelization of the interior. They didn't want to be hampered by getting too rooted in the port cities. While the decision must have seemed a sound one from where the secretary sat on the other side of the world, and while their missionaries in China shared the vision for carrying the gospel into the interior, the decision did nothing to solve the immediate problem of where they were to live until the society's mission was feasible. Deeply disappointed by the response, Dr. and Mrs. Parker decided to accept the offer of a new medical work in Ningpo. While Hudson supported his friend's decision, he was left in even more uncertainty. His colleagues were leaving. His home was gone. And with no accommodations to be found even in the native city, how was he to remain in Shanghai to continue his work? In the midst of his discouragement, Hudson began to develop an idea. If he could not get a home on shore, why not take to the boats as many Chinese did and live on the water? That would coincide nicely with something else he'd been thinking about. He'd made up his mind that the best way to live among and minister to the Chinese was to adopt the Chinese custom of dress. Yes, he could see how it would work. He would take his few belongings to Ningpo when he went to escort the Parkers and would return to a new life in which he would identify himself completely with the Chinese people to whom he had dedicated his life. Hudson realized that this was a momentous decision. Adopting Chinese dress would mean shaving the front part of his head and letting the hair grow long and back to be braided into a regulation kiu. No missionaries or any other foreigners conformed to such a custom. For an occasional journey, a Chinese gown might be worn over ordinary western clothing, but to give up European clothing altogether in favor of Chinese dress would be another matter entirely. He would not only be criticized, his decision would probably result in total rejection. But it was access to the people that he desired, and his recent journey 200 miles up the Yangtze River in May had convinced Hudson that much more could be accomplished by a tenor of evangelism than many had supposed. But the weariness and strain of the journey had been largely due to the fact that he was wearing European clothing, a most outlandish costume to those who had never seen it before. Attention was continually distracted from his message by his appearance, which to his hearers was as undignified as it was comical. He was sure it would have been much easier if only he had been more suitably attired from the Chinese point of view. And if it furthered his relationship with the Chinese listeners, he decided that he didn't care what the foreign community thought. So he ordered a Chinese outfit made for his journey to Ningpo with the parkers and readied himself for his personal cross-cultural transformation. It was an August evening when Hudson went down to the river to engage the junk that was to take the parkers on the first stage of their journey. On the way, a Chinese stranger approached him, asking to his surprise if he was seeking a house for rent. Would a small one do? And in the Chinese city? Near the south gate there was such a house, but its builder had not yet quite finished, and the construction would be done shortly, but they had run out of money. In short, he couldn't complete the work. But if the house suited Hudson, no deposit would be asked, and it could probably be had for an advance of six months' rent. As if in a wonderful dream, Hudson Taylor followed his guide to the southern part of the city, and there found a small, compact house, perfectly new and clean, with two rooms upstairs, two on the ground floor, and a fifth across the courtyard for servants. Just the arrangement he needed for his work, and in the locality he would have chosen. This last-minute answer to prayer seemed clear guidance from God that Hudson Taylor's work in Shanghai was not yet over. That same night he visited a Chinese barber for the beginning of his transformation from European to Chinese fashion, and the next morning he appeared for the first time in public dressed as a Chinese teacher, a man for the scholarly class. It was in his new costume that he accompanied the Parkers to their new home in Ningpo, and about which he wrote this amusing letter to his sister on August 28, 1855. My dear Amelia, by way of surprise I mean to write you a letter, for I know that you have never received one before from a man with a long tail and a shaven head. But lest your head should be bewildered with conjecture, I had better tell you at once that on Thursday last, at 11 p.m., I resigned my locks to the barber, dyed my hair a good black, and in the morning had a proper queue plaited in with my own, and a quantity of heavy silk to lengthen it out according to the Chinese custom. Then in Chinese dress I set out with Dr. Parker, accompanying him about 100 miles on his way to Ningpo. This journey was made on occasion for evangelistic work, and now that I am returning alone I hope to have even better facilities for book distribution and preaching. But I have not yet commenced the recital of my tribulations, and as there is some doubt as to whether they will all go into a single letter, the sooner I begin the better. First, then, it is a very sore thing to have one's head shaved for the first time, especially if the skin is irritable with prickly heat. And I can assure you that the subsequent application of hair dye for five or six hours—let's charge one part, quick lime, freshly slacked three parts, water enough to make a cream, etc.—does not do much to soothe the irritation. But when it comes to combing out the remaining hair which has been allowed to grow longer than usual, the climax is reached. But there are no gains without pain, and certainly if suffering for the thing makes it dearer, I shall regard my queue when I attain one with no small amount of pride and affection. Secondly, when you proceed to your toilet, you no longer wonder why many Chinese in the employ of Europeans wear foreign shoes and stockings as soon as they can get them. For native socks are made of calico and of course are not elastic, and average toes decidedly object to be squeezed out of shape, nor do one's heels appreciate their low position in perfectly flat-soled shoes. Next come the breeches. But oh, what unheard-of garments! Mine are two feet too wide for around the waist, which amplitude is laid in a fold in front and kept in place by a strong girdle. The legs are short, not coming much below the knee, and wide in proportion with the waist measurement. Tucked into the long white socks, they have a bloomer-like fullness, capable, as Dr. Parker remarked, of storing a fortnight's provisions. No shirt is worn, but a white washing jacket with sleeves as wide as ladies affected twenty years ago supplies its place. And overall goes a heavy silk gown of some rich or delicate color, with sleeves equally wide and reaching twelve or fifteen inches beyond the tips of one's fingers, folded back of course when the hands are not in use. Unfortunately, no cap or hat is used at this season of the year, except on state occasions, which is trying as the sun is awfully hot. Wednesday, August 29th. I do not know, dear Amelia, whether you are weary of these details, but I have no time for more upon the subject, so we'll dismiss it with only a mention of the shampooing I got from the barber the other day. I thought I had better go in for it as part of the proceedings, for I might be in difficulty someday if found to be uninitiated. So I bore with an outrageous tickling as long as I could, and then the beating commenced, and my back was really sore in places before it was over. On the next occasion, however, I stood it better, and I hope to equip myself creditably in time with regard to this phase of the barber's art. While still with Dr. Parker on the way to Hang Chau Bay, I was frequently recognized as a foreigner because of having to speak to him in English, but today, going about Haicheng City, no one even guessed that such a being was near. It was not until I began to distribute books and see patients that I became known. Then, of course, my men were asked where I came from, and the news soon spread. Dressed in this way, one is not so much respected at first sight as one might be in foreign clothing, but a little medical work soon puts that all right, and it is evidently to be one's chief help for the interior. Women and children, it seems to me, manifest more readiness to come for medical aid now than they did before, and in this way, too, I think the native costume will be of service. I was the interior that more and more filled his thoughts and his prayers, even as he settled into his new home in Shanghai. Everything he did was in preparation for that calling, and in that preparation, Hudson soon found great encouragement. In October, he wrote, Dr. Parker is in Ninh Phu, but I am not alone. I have such a sensible presence of God with me as I never before experienced, and such drawings to prayer and watchfulness are very much blessed and necessary. So it was with renewed spirits that despite the comfort of a new place of his own and numerous opportunities all around him in Shanghai, Hudson Taylor set out once again for the regions beyond. This time he went alone and dressed like the Chinese people themselves, and the advantages of his new strategy became quickly apparent. His destination on this journey was the great island and city of Tsung Ming, which had a population of more than a million people without a single Protestant missionary. Hudson had been well received months before in his visit to Tsung Ming when his friend burdened, but the reception he received this time amazed him. At his first landing place, the people simply would not hear of his leaving. Those who had seen foreigners before had never seen one dressed in Chinese custom. This teacher did not seem at all like an outsider. His medicine chest attracted them as much as his preaching, so when they learned that he would need an upstairs room because of the dampness of the area, they said, let him live in the temple if no other upper story can be found. But a householder stepped forward to say that he had an empty attic apartment, so within three days of his arrival in Tsung Ming, Hudson Taylor found himself in possession of his first home in inland China. After all his difficulties getting established in Shanghai, this was exciting reassurance for the young missionary, almost as exciting as the response of the people in Tsung Ming. Neighbors dropped in every day to the meetings, and the stream of visitors and patients seemed unceasing. Six weeks of this encouraging work, while it wakes some opposition on the part of the Chinese medical fraternity, resulted in a group of regular Chinese listeners who earnestly wanted to learn about Christianity. One of these was a blacksmith named Chong, and another a successful businessman whose heart, Hudson wrote, the Lord opened. Hudson's own first Chinese confer, Gui Wa, from Shanghai, and another Christian helper were with him. So when the missionary had to return to Shanghai for supplies, the little group of new believers and seekers was still well cared for. But the heartening success in Tsung Ming turned to bitter disappointment during one of his trips back to Shanghai, where he found an official summons waiting for him. He was to report to British consulate at once. Unknown to Hudson, a small group of Chinese doctors and druggists in Tsung Ming had pulled some strings. They bribed a local official to carry to the authorities their complaints about this foreign doctor, who was interfering with their work by accepting no payment for his medical practice. The Chinese official did complain to the British authorities, and the consul called Hudson in to remind him that the British treaty with China only provided for residence in the port, and if he attempted to settle elsewhere, he would be subject to a fine of five hundred dollars. Hudson pleaded his case, pointing out that French priests were living in Tsung Ming, protected by a supplemental treaty which stipulated that any immunities granted to other nations should also apply to the British. But the consul said that he didn't have the authority to make that ruling. Any appeal would need to go to his supervisors. In the meantime, Hudson was ordered out of Tsung Ming and instructed not to transgress the treaty in the future. So it looked as if he would have to give up the successful new ministry that had excited and encouraged him so much. And he'd also have to give up that first home in the interior, that had seemed like such a clear sign of God's direction and blessing on his work. Now we go to the years 1855 and 1856. It was a frustrated, heartbroken letter Hudson Taylor wrote home that evening. Those young inquirers at Tsung Ming, Tsung Sa, and the others, what was to become of them? Weren't they now his own children in the faith? How could he leave them with no help and so little Christian knowledge? He inquired in his letter to the secretaries about his responsibilities and limitations. Forbidden to reside on the island and finding that even traveling into the country and remaining for a short time is an infringement of the treaty which may be visited by a fine of five hundred dollars, I have thought it best to write privately and inquire whether, in case I should be fined, that the society should be responsible for the sum. Also whether, if circumstances should make it possible for me to go to the interior, giving up all claim to counsel or protection, you would approve my doing so. Should I be left free to follow this course? Or would the society object to one of their missionaries adopting such a position? Although the attempt to rent a house and reside in Tsung Ming has met with failure, we must be very thankful for what has been accomplished. I have every reason to hope that three of those who profess to believe in the Lord Jesus are sincere, and if so, the results will last to all eternity. At the same time, it makes it all the harder to give up the work. Pray for me. I do not want on the one hand to flee from danger, nor on the other to court troubles, or from lack of patience to hinder future usefulness. Hudson determined to challenge the council's ruling by taking the matter before the British minister who was scheduled to arrive in Shanghai within weeks, but in the meantime there was nothing to do but take his sad leave from Tsung Ming. My heart will be truly sorrowful when I can no longer join you in the meetings, said the Chinese blacksmith the last evening the little group was together. But you will worship in your own home, Hudson told him. Still shut your shop on Sunday, for God is here whether I am here or not. Get someone to read to you, and gather your neighbors in to hear the gospel. I know but very little, Tsung added, and when I read, I by no means understand all the characters. My heart is grieved because you have to leave us, but I do thank God that he ever sent you to this place. My sins, once so heavy, are all laid on Jesus, and he daily gives me joy and peace. Hudson returned to Shanghai, and the even more disheartening news that the British minister was delayed. Any hope for appeal would have to be put off. In his discouragement, Hudson wrote his parents. Pray for me. I need more grace, and live far below my privileges. Oh, to feel more as the Lord Jesus Christ did when he said, I lay down my life for my sheep. I do not want to be as a harling who flees when the wolf is near, nor would I likely run into danger when much may be accomplished in safety. I want to know the Lord's will, and to have grace to do it, even if it results in expatriation. Pray for me, that I may be a follower of Christ, not in word only, but in deed and truth. It was at this low point in his life that prayers for encouragement, both Hudson's prayers and the prayers of those who cared about him, were answered in a most unexpected way. William Burns, a preacher and evangelist who had become a household name in Scotland during the country's great revival in 1839, had also felt a call to evangelize the interior of China. In an attempt to reach the Taiping rebel capital of Nanking, he actually journeyed far up the Yangtze River before he was turned back. So it was that he ended up in Shanghai where he met the young Hudson Taylor, who was still stinging from his own recent failure. Despite the disparity in age, the two men discovered that they were kindred spirits, and like those New Testament missionaries Paul and Timothy, they were drawn together in friendship as well as ministry. Soon their two boats began traveling together over the network of waterways leading inland from Shanghai. The older missionary had developed a strategy of his own for such work, and Hudson gladly adopted it. Choosing an important trade center, they might remain two or three weeks in one place. Every morning they sat out early with a definite plan, sometimes going to the outskirts of a city in which foreigners had rarely been seen, and from a city's perimeter they would work their way slowly into the more crowded quarters. So they would give several days to preaching in the suburbs, gradually approaching the thronging streets and markets by which time they were familiar figures and could pass about without attracting a rowdy, curious crowd that would arouse the shopkeepers' tempers or endanger their wares. They would also visit temples, schools, and tea shops, returning regularly to the best places for preaching. Announcing at each meeting when they would be there again, they were encouraged to see many of the same faces again and again, and those interested hearers could be invited to the boats for further conversation. Just as Hudson learned from his older friend, William Burns, also learned from him. As time went on, the Scottish evangelist could not fail to notice that Hudson Taylor, though so much younger and less experienced, had the more attentive hearers wherever they journeyed. Hudson was even asked into private houses while he himself was often requested to wait outside. The riffraff of the crowd always seemed to gather around the preacher in foreign dress, while those who wished to hear undisturbed followed his less noticeable young friend. Mr. Burns wrote about his experiences with Hudson in this letter, dated January 26, 1856. It is now 41 days since I left Shanghai on this last occasion. An excellent young English missionary, Mr. Taylor of the Chinese Evangelization Society, has been my companion, and we have experienced much mercy, and on some occasions considerable help in our work. I must once more tell the story I've had to tell more than once already, how four weeks ago on the 29th of December, I put on Chinese dress which I am now wearing. Mr. Taylor had made this change a few months before, and I found that he was in consequence so much less incommitted in preaching, etc., by the crowd, that I concluded that it was my duty to follow his example. We have a large, very large field of labor in this region, though it might be difficult in the meantime for one to establish himself in any one particular place. The people listen with attention, but we need the power from on high to convince and convert. Is there any spirit of prayer on our behalf among God's people in Kilseth, or is there any effort to seek the spirit? How great the need is, and how great the arguments and motives for prayer in this case. The harvest here is indeed great, and the laborers are few and imperfectly fitted without much grace for such a work, and yet grace can make a few feeble instruments the means of accomplishing great things, things greater even than we can conceive. He was mighty in the scriptures, and his greatest power in preaching was the way in which he used the sword of the Spirit upon men's consciences and hearts. Sometimes one might have thought in listening to his solemn appeals that one was hearing a new chapter in the Bible when first spoken by a living prophet. His whole life was literally a life of prayer, and his ministry a series of battles fought at the mercy seat. In digging in the field of the Word, he threw up now and then great nuggets which formed part of one's spiritual wealth forever after. A cultured, genial, and witty man who enjoyed singing, William Burns proved not only to be a powerful spiritual role model in Hudson Taylor's life, he was a wonderfully lively companion and friend. He loved to tell stories, was happy to share the wisdom of his long years of experience with his young friend. As a result, Hudson's time spent with William Burns was as instructive as any university degree and far more practical, because William Burns lived out before him, right there in China, the reality of all Hudson needed to be and know. If any man have Christ in his heart, William Burns would say, heaven before his eyes, and only as much of temporal blessings as is just needful to carry him safely through life, then pain and sorrow have little to shoot at. To be in union with him who is shepherd of Israel, to walk very near him who is both sun and shield, comprehends all a poor sinner requires to make him happy between this and heaven. So it was that the two men worked together for seven long happy months. It was during this time, as they continued their travels around the Shanghai region, that a Captain Bowers, a Christian ship's captain, told them about the great need to establish a mission in the city of Swatow. Even as the captain talked, Hudson began to feel the calling of God to that great southern port to which no missionaries had ever gone. But he resisted the feeling for some time because he dreaded the thought of parting from his friend. Finally the evening came when he could resist his sense of calling no longer. He later wrote about the occasion. I asked Mr. Burns to come to the little house that was still my headquarters, and there with many tears I told him how the Lord had been leading me, and how rebellious I had been and unwilling to leave him for this new sphere. He listened with a strange look of surprise and pleasure rather than of pain, and replied that he had determined that very night to tell me that he had heard the Lord's call to Swatow, and that his one regret had been the severance of our happy fellowship. Arriving in Swatow, the two missionaries could find only a single room to rent over an incense shop in a crowded quarter of the city. When Captain Bowers visited them soon afterwards, he described their situation in a letter to a mutual friend back home. Seeking out his wretched lodging in Swatow, amongst the degraded of every class, I remarked, Surely, Mr. Burns, you might find a better place to live. He laughingly told me that he was more content in the midst of this people than he would be at home surrounded by every comfort. He said his expenses amounted to ten dollars a month. Mr. Burns, I exclaimed, that would not keep me in cigars. He said it was sufficient for him. To William Burns and Hudson Taylor, ten dollars a month for a single room, even a room they had to enter through an opening in the floor seemed like a bargain. But if it hadn't been for their inconspicuous Chinese dress, it is doubtful that they could have survived, let alone preach and make the friendships they did in that violent, hostile city. Europeans were suspect in Swatow because of the foreign involvement in the drug and slavery trade which plagued this corrupt city and about which Hudson wrote to his family. About 200 boxes of opium are imported monthly. Each box contains 40 balls of about 40 pounds in weight. Thus, not less than 32,000 pounds weight of opium enter China every month at this port alone, the cost of which is about a quarter of a million sterling. After this, you would not be surprised to learn that the people are wretchedly poor, ignorant, and vicious. A cruel slave trade also is carried on under the name of the coolie traffic. The men are engaged, nominally, for a certain term of years, but few live to return. A bounty is paid them, and they are told they are going to make their fortunes, or they are entrapped by worse means. Once on the ship, the agent receives so much a head for the poor fellows who soon find themselves in captivity of the most horrible kind. Some jump overboard in their efforts to escape the but they are generally retaken and flogged. Some ships carry a thousand, and others three or four hundred, and very many die before reaching their destination, Cuba, Havana, and Cala. Of one ship with several hundreds on board, I heard the surgeon say that not more than two-thirds would survive the voyage. Poor people. In a later letter to his sister, he wrote more about the conditions he saw around him. If ever there was a place needing the blessings of the gospel, it is certainly this place. Men are sunk so low as to have lost all sense of shame, lower even than the beasts that perish. The official classes are as bad as the rest, and instead of restraint, you would not be surprised to learn that the people are wretchedly poor, ignorant, and vicious. A cruel slave trade also is carried on under the name of the coolie traffic. The men are engaged, nominally, for a certain term of years, but few live to return. A bounty is paid them, and they are told they are going to make their fortunes, or they are entrapped by worse means. Once on the ship, the agent receives so much a head for the poor fellows who soon find themselves in captivity of most horrible kind. Some jump overboard in their efforts to escape, but they are generally retaken and flogged. Some ships carry a thousand, and others three or four hundred, and very many die before reaching their destination, Cuba, Havana, and Cala. Of one ship, with several hundreds on board, I heard the surgeon say that not more than two-thirds would survive the voyage. Poor people. In a later letter to his sister, he wrote more about the conditions he saw around him. If ever there was a place needing the blessings of the gospel, it is certainly this place. Men are sunk so low as to have lost all sense of shame, lower even than the beasts that perish. The official classes are as bad as the rest, and instead of restraining evil, are governed themselves by opium and love of money. And if it be possible to live worse lives than the heathen, then the sailors and other foreigners who frequent Double Island do so. Sin does indeed reign here, and as always, those most to be pitied and whose case seems most helpless are the women. However low men seek in lands, women seek lower. Looked upon as hardly having any soul, girls are sold here for wives or slaves, and are left entirely without education. Married women and families are not numerous in proportion to the population, but the number of unfortunate women is great. I say unfortunate advisedly, for they are bought and brought up for this very purpose. They are the absolute property of their owners, and have no escape from that which many of them abhor. Only a few nights ago I was distressed by heart-rendering screams from two female voices, and an inquirer was told that they were most likely newly bought women in a house nearby who were being tortured into submission. And that, added my informant, is very common here. The cries went on for about two hours. Poor things! This is hardly a fit subject to write to you about, but unless you know, how can you pity and pray for them? English women little realize all they owe to the gospel. It was in such a setting that Hudson Taylor and William Burns not only lived and survived, but saw such heartening response to their message, and made so many friends that they were able, after only four months, to rent an entire house that would serve as the headquarters of their growing ministry. It was at this point that the older missionary convinced Hudson to return to Shanghai for his medical supplies in order that they could open up a hospital as part of their work in Saitao. Hudson went, but only reluctantly. He hated to leave the older man alone to face the oppressive heat and accompanying diseases. Of summer, as much as he dreaded the temporary end of the companionship that had come to mean so much to him, he recalled the time later, saying, those happy months were an unspeakable joy and comfort to me. Never had I had such a spiritual father as Mr. Burns. Never did I know such holy, happy friendship. His love for the word was delightful, and his holy, reverential life and constant communing with God made fellowship with him to satisfy the deep cravings of my heart. But Hudson did indeed sail for Shanghai, where he made the disheartening discovery that all his medical supplies had been destroyed by fire, and before he could replace them and return to Saitao, he received the even more distressing news that William Burns had been arrested by the corrupt Chinese authorities in Saitao, and sent under escort on the harsh 31-day journey to Canton. Hudson himself was forbidden to return to Saitao. Suddenly, the path that had seemed so clear before him was again blocked, and yet it was this latest obstacle in his life's journey that sent him on a detour that he would never once regret. This brings us to the years of 1856 through 1858. Over the political horizon, storm clouds had been gathering for many months. Now the very mail that brought tidings of William Burns' arrest told also of the outbreak of hostilities between England and China. Hudson had traveled to see Dr. Parker in Ningpo in hopes that he might have some extra medical supplies from which he could replenish his lost equipment. So it was at Ningpo that there came word of the bombardment of Canton by the British fleet, and the start of the war between China and England, which was not to end until four years later. On hearing about the news of war, Hudson's first concern naturally was for William Burns. He was, fortunately, no longer at Saitao, exposed to the rage of the hot-headed southern people. About all this, Hudson wrote his sister in November. As you are aware, I have been detained in Ningpo by various circumstances, and a sufficient cause has at length appeared in the disturbances which have broken out in the south. The latest news we now have is that Canton has been bombarded for two days, a breach being made on the second, and that the British entered the city, the viceroy refusing to give any satisfaction. We are anxiously awaiting later and fuller accounts. I know not the merits of the present course of action, and therefore refrain from writing my thoughts about it. But I would just refer to the goodness of God in removing Mr. Burns from Saitao in time, for if one may judge of the feelings of the Cantonese in Saitao by what one sees here at present, it would go hard with anyone at their mercy. So once again, something that seemed a great calamity one minute, was soon seen to be included in the all things that the Apostle Paul said worked together for good for them that love God. And that was a lesson reinforced all the more by yet another development during Hudson's unplanned detention in Ningpo, in the southern section of the city, near the ancient pagoda, was a quiet street named Bridge Street, between two lakes. There Hudson's old friend and former colleague, Dr. Parker, had opened a dispensary a mile or two from his hospital. It was there, as autumn was advancing, that Hudson Taylor happily found a temporary home. Looking back on those days, he wrote, I have a distinct remembrance of tracing my initials on the snow which during the night had collected on my coverlet in the large barn-like upper room. The tiling of a Chinese house may keep off the rain, if it happens to be sound, but does not afford so good protection against snow, which will beat up through the crannies and crevices and find its way within. But however unfurnished may have been its fittings, the little house was well adapted for work among the people, and there I thankfully settled, finding ample scope for service morning, noon, and night. The only other foreigners in that part of the city were Mr. and Mrs. J. Jones, also of the Chinese Evangelization Society, and Miss Aldersey, who, with the help of two young English sisters, was running a surprisingly successful school for girls, the first ever opened in China. The sisters were the orphan daughters of the Reverend Samuel Dyer, one of the earliest missionaries to China. When the Jones family had come to live not far from the school, the younger of the sisters, Marie Dyer, found many opportunities to help out and befriend the busy young mother. Whenever she could, Maria went out with the Jones to do neighborhood evangelism. Her fluency in the language providing a big help. Though she was not yet twenty, this bright, gifted girl had the heart of an evangelist. That was no doubt one of the things about Maria that attracted Hudson Taylor's interest, for in the home of his fellow workers he couldn't help but encounter Marie Dyer from time to time, and he soon found that he couldn't help but think of her even when he didn't encounter her. She had such a warm and open manner that the two young people soon became good friends, and before long she began to fill a place in his heart that had never been filled before. But before he was willing to admit his feelings, even to himself, outside circumstances interrupted their blossoming friendship. A plot to massacre all foreigners was discovered. Though the plan was thwarted, hostility among the region's Cantonese population toward the British was so widespread that the foreign community couldn't afford to ignore the danger. So it was decided that families with children would be sent to Shanghai, the port with the most secure foreign settlement. Hudson's familiarity with the Shanghai dialect made him the most logical escort for the party. As much as he hated to leave, he couldn't very well refuse the unwanted assignment. Miss Aldersey could not be persuaded to leave Ningpu. Nearing retirement age, she was in the process of turning the management of her school over to the American Presbyterian Mission and didn't want any additional unnecessary disruptions. So, taking what precautions were possible, she encouraged the Dyer sisters to remain in Ningpu with her. And since Maria's sister had just become engaged to his own special friend J.S. Burden, Hudson worried that Maria would feel all the more alone and unprotected. Yet, before he left for Shanghai, Hudson said nothing to Maria or to anyone else about his growing affection. Indeed, he tried to deny it, for he had no reason to believe that she felt the same way about him, and he wasn't anxious to have his heart broken again. In addition, his time in China had showed him the kind of sacrifices required to carry out his call to evangelize the interior, and he had begun to realize lately how little security he had to offer a wife. His position with the Chinese Evangelization Society was becoming more and more embarrassing. For some time, he had known that the society was in debt and that his salary was being paid from borrowed funds. Recalling the circumstances, he later wrote, Personally, I had always avoided debt, though at times only by very careful economy. Now there was no difficulty in doing this, for my income was larger, but the society itself was in debt. The quarterly bills which I and others were instructed to draw were often met with borrowed money, and a correspondence commenced which terminated in the following year by my resigning from conscientious motives. To me, it seemed that the teaching of God's word was unmistakably clear. Oh, no man, anything. To borrow money implied to my mind a contradiction of scripture, a confession that God has withheld some good thing, and a determination to get for ourselves what he has not given. Could that which was wrong for one Christian be right for an association of Christians? Or could any amount of precedence make a wrong course justifiable? If the word taught me anything, it taught me to have no connection with debt. I could not think that God was poor, that he was short of resources, or unwilling to supply any want of whatever work was really his. It seemed to me that if there were lack of funds to carry on work, then to that degree, in that special development, or at that time, it could not be the work of God. To satisfy my conscience, I was therefore compelled to resign my connection with the society. It was a great satisfaction to me that my friend and colleague, Mr. Jones, was led to take the same step, and we were both profoundly thankful that the separation took place without the least breach of friendly feeling on either side. The step we had taken was not a little trying to faith. I was not at all sure what God would have me to do, or whether he would so meet my need as to enable me to continue working as before. But God blessed and prospered me, and how glad and thankful I felt when the separation was really effected. I could look right up into my father's face with a satisfied heart, ready by his grace to do the next things as he might teach me, and feeling very sure of his loving care. And how blessedly he did lead me, I can never, never tell. It was like a continuation of some of my earlier experiences at home. My faith was not untried. It often, often failed, and I was so sorry and ashamed of the failure to trust such a father. But, oh, I was learning to know him. I would not even then have missed the trial. He became so near, so real, so intimate. The occasional difficulty about funds never came from any insufficient supply for personal need, but in consequence of ministering to the wants of scores of the hungry and dying around us. And trials far more searching in other ways quite eclipsed these difficulties, and being deeper brought forth, and in consequence, richer fruits. That winter thousands of homeless refugees poured into Shanghai from districts devastated by the ongoing Taiping Rebellion. Some of these sick, starving, often naked refugees lived in cemeteries where they found shelter by breaking into low-arched tombs. Others crowded into any abandoned building, even those in ruins. And although Hudson took charge of one of the chapels of the London Mission and preached daily in the City Temple, he went regularly into the haunts of misery to care for sick refugees and to feed many of the hungry. But no matter how busy he was, Hudson's thoughts turned constantly to Ning Po. Could God be in the feelings he was having? He had to be sure. Back in Ning Po, unknown to Hudson, the one he loved was thinking just as much about him. And though Maria also prayed about her own growing feelings, she told no one but God, for she realized that no one else saw what she saw in Hudson Taylor. He was different from others, not more gifted or attractive, though he was bright, pleasant, and seemed to be fun-loving. There was just something about him that made her feel rested and understood. He seemed to live in such a real world and have such a real great God. Though she hadn't seen that much of him during his time in Ning Po, she was startled to find how much she missed him when he left for Shanghai. She heard others criticize his Chinese dress, but she loved it. At least she loved what it represented of his spirit. She also respected his poverty and generous giving to the destitute. His vision to take the gospel to the interior was her vision as well, though it seemed so impractical for a woman. So she thought and prayed about her friend during that long winter he was away in Shanghai, even though she had no assurance of his feeling for her. Love finally conquered the silence. Hudson sent Maria a letter declaring his feelings and asking if she would consent to become engaged. The first thing Maria did when she got the letter was to search out her sister and share her wonderful news. Then the two of them went to talk to Miss Alderzee, whose response was indignant. Mr. Taylor, that young, poor, unconnected nobody! How dare he presume to think of such a thing! Of course the proposal must be refused at once, and that finally! Maria tried to explain how much she felt for him, and that only made matters worse. Miss Alderzee decided Maria must be saved from such folly. The result was a letter, dictated by Miss Alderzee, but written by Maria, not only closing the matter but requesting most decidedly that it might never be reopened. Bewildered and heartbroken, Maria felt she had no choice. She was too young and inexperienced and too shy in such matters to stand up against Miss Alderzee's decision, and in the long, lonely days that followed, even when her sister was won over to Miss Alderzee's position, she prayed with a determined faith that nothing, nothing at all was too hard for the Lord. If he has to slay my Isaac, she assured herself again and again, I know he can restore. Yet she wondered if she would ever see Hudson again. When Hudson did return to Ningpo that spring, the situation grew even more painful. Hudson, after the letter he received from Maria, could not attempt to see her, yet his feelings for her remained unchanged, and she had no way to let him know that the letter she had written wasn't any indication of her true emotions. Meanwhile, Miss Alderzee, distressed of Hudson Taylor's reappearance, felt it her duty to disparage him in every possible way, not just to Maria, but throughout the foreign community in Ningpo. His Chinese dress became the object of criticism and scorn, and his new status as independent missionary, not connected to any recognized mission, made him an even better target for criticism. He was accused of being called by no one, connected with no one, and recognized by no one as the minister of the gospel. Other insinuations soon followed. He was fanatical, undependable, diseased in body and mind, and totally worthless. As a gifted and attractive young woman, Maria had no lack of other suitors who were openly encouraged by Miss Alderzee. At the same time, Chinese etiquette, combined with his intention to honor the request of her letter, made it look impossible for Hudson to meet with Maria. Yet both young people continued praying for some indication of God's will. Then one sultry day in July, at the end of an afternoon prayer meeting of missionary women at the Jones' house, a storm swept up the Tidal River and deluged Ningpo with sudden torrents of rain. Those women who hadn't left included Marie Dyer and one of her closest friends, and they could do nothing but wait until the storm blew over. When Mr. Jones and Hudson returned to the house from the dispensary next door, to learn that Maria and her companion were still waiting for sedan chairs, Hudson's friend, who knew about his feelings for Maria, said to him, Go into my study and I will see what can be arranged. A short while later, Hudson's friend came downstairs to tell him that Maria and her friend were now the only ladies left. They were alone with Mrs. Jones and would be glad to see him. Hardly believing his good fortune, his heart pounding in anticipation, Hudson went upstairs to see Maria for the first time in months. He saw nothing in the room but her face, and when he asked her permission to write to her guardian back in England, she quickly and eagerly consented. At the same time, she let him know she felt the same love for him that he'd expressed for her. They recognized the obstacles still before them, but they determined together to keep praying for God's leading in their situation. Finally, knowing the truth of their mutual love brought indescribable joy to the young couple, but it did nothing for their patience as they waited for a response to Hudson's letter to Maria's uncle, and it made the continuance of Miss Aldersey's enforced separation seem all the more trying. Four months stretched out like an eternity, especially when they knew Miss Aldersey had written home with the same accusation she'd been voicing around Ning Po. What if Maria's uncle was persuaded by her charges? What if he refused his consent to the marriage? Both young people felt that God's blessing depended on their obedience to those in parental authority. Taylor wrote later, I've never known disobedience to the definite command of a parent, even if that parent was mistaken. This was followed by retribution. The responsibility is with the parent in such a case, and it is a serious one. When the son or daughter can say in all sincerity, I am waiting for thee, Lord, to open the way. The matter is in his hands, and he will take it up. One day near the end of November, patience and faith were both rewarded. The letter arrived. After careful inquiry, Maria's uncle in London had satisfied himself that Hudson Taylor was a missionary of unusual promise. The secretaries of the Chinese Evangelization Society had nothing but good to say of him, and he got nothing but praise from other sources. So dismissing the unfair criticism for what it was, he cordially consented to his niece's engagement, requesting only that the marriage be delayed until she became of age. Her twenty-first birthday would be less than two months away. Hudson could scarcely contain his excitement. He had to tell Maria the news, but how? Under the circumstances, he couldn't rush to the school and ask to see her. There was, in fact, no place at the school appropriate for a private meeting to discuss their plans, and his own home was out of the question as well. But when one of the missionary wives from the American Baptist Mission Board heard of his dilemma, she devised a plan to get the couple together. She lived in a quiet place outside the city wall and close to the river. She would send a note to the school asking Maria to visit her at her home, and if somebody else just happened to be there when she arrived, well, such things happen. So it was in Miss Knowlton's drawing room that Hudson waited while a messenger crossed the river to the school. Finally, he heard Maria's voice in the hall. The door opened, and they were together, alone for the first time. More than 40 years later, Hudson Taylor said of that moment, we sat side by side on the sofa, her hand clasped in mine. It never cooled, my love for her, and it is not cooled now. Once they were publicly and officially engaged, they began making up for all the time they had been kept apart. Maria's birthday was on January 16, so the wedding was planned for the following week. Several times that winter, Hudson Taylor's finances dwindled to almost nothing. Once his funds were down to one twentieth of a cent before an unexpected shipment of mail arrived with additional funds from supporters back home. Encouraged as he was by such last-minute provision for his needs, he realized again how little he had to offer a wife. He explained his precarious financial situation to Maria, saying, I cannot hold you to your promise if you would rather draw back. You see how difficult our life may be at times. Have you forgotten, she interrupted, I was left an orphan in a far-off land. God has been my father all these years. Do you think I should be afraid to trust him now? My heart did sing for joy, Hudson said, recalling the story, and his excitement is obvious in the letter he penned to his mother. I never felt in better health or spirits in my life. I can scarcely realize, dear mother, what has happened, that after all the agony and suspense we have suffered, we are not only at the liberty to meet and to be much with each other, but within a few days we are to be married. God has been so good to us. He has indeed answered our prayer and taken our part against the mighty. Oh, may we walk more closely with him and serve him more faithfully. I wish you knew, my precious one, she is such a treasure. She is all that I desire. And then six weeks later, oh, to be married to the one you do love, and love most tenderly and devotedly. That is bliss beyond the power of words to express or imagination to conceive. There is no disappointment there. And every day as it shows more of the mind of your beloved, when you have such a treasure as mine, makes you only more proud, more happy, more humbly thankful to the giver of all good for these best of earthly gifts. The year 1858 and 1859. In the first months after their wedding, Hudson and Maria Taylor broke ground for a small home and headquarters in a rural district a few miles out of Ningpo. Surrounded by a large fishing population, they spent a happy month preaching of Christ to people who had never heard the gospel. When they both contracted a fever, which turned out to be typhoid, and they were forced to move back to the city to recuperate and find lodging for the hot summer months in some place where they wouldn't have to sleep on the ground floor. So it was that the little house on Bridge Street, where Hudson had lived for a time as a bachelor, became a real home. Downstairs, the chapel and guest hall remained the same, and the Chinese Christians and inquirers came and went freely. But upstairs, the barn-like attic was transformed into cheery little rooms whose curtained windows looking out on the narrow street in front and the canal behind. Marie Taylor, having lived in that neighborhood for five years, had friends everywhere among the people. Hudson soon realized what an advantage it was to their ministry that women and children could now be evangelized along with the men. And since all the world loves a lover, the obvious affection and warmth evidenced by this young couple attracted old and new friends alike to the fellowship of their home. One of their dearest friends and helpers was an ex-Buddhist leader, a cotton merchant named Mr. Nee. He had lived in Ningpo many years and was a deeply religious man. He spent much of his time and money in service to the gods, yet he was satisfied by the religions he studied and taught to others. Then, passing an open door on the street one evening, he heard a bell being rung and saw people assembling as if for a meeting. Learning that it was a hall for the discussion of religious matters, he too went in. Leading the meeting was a young foreigner in Chinese dress preaching from his sacred classics. The young man seemed at home in the Ningpo dialect, and Mr. Nee could understand every word of the passage he read. But what was its meaning? As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so the Son of Man men be lifted up. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoso believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." Mr. Nee was both puzzled and moved by what he heard. Saved, not condemned? A way to find everlasting life? A God who loved the world? The meeting came to a close. The foreign teacher ceased speaking, and with the instinct of one accustomed to lead in such matters, Nee rose in his place, looking around at the audience and said simply, I have long sought the truth, but without finding it. I have traveled far and near, but have never searched it out. In Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, I have found no rest. But I do find rest in what we have heard tonight. Henceforth, I am a believer in Jesus. This new believer became an ardent student of the Bible. The rapid spiritual growth which resulted was a great encouragement to the Taylors. Not long after his conversion, he obtained permission to address a meeting of the religious society over which he had formerly presided. Hudson accompanied Mr. Nee on this occasion and was deeply impressed by the clarity and the conviction with which he preached. And when one of his former followers was led to Christ through his testimony, Hudson shared Mr. Nee's excitement of becoming a soul winner. One day, while talking with his missionary friend, Mr. Nee raised the question, How long have you had the glad tidings in your country? Some hundreds of years, Hudson replied. What? Hundreds of years? My father sought the truth. He continually, sadly, and died without finding it. Oh, why did you not come sooner? It was a painful moment which Hudson Taylor would never forget, and he deepened his sense of calling. There was so much work to be done. He must still take the message of Christ into the interior of China, where millions and millions still died every year without having heard the good news. It was easy for Hudson to grow impatient with the work. What he really needed was more help. He was tempted by the prospect of hiring some of the new Chinese Christians to assist him full time. Already Mr. Nee was eagerly devoting all the time he could spare from his business. So were others from the growing band of converts. Ning Qi, the basket maker, Wang, the farmer of Hussie, and Tussie, the teacher. Though they and others were all occupied in their necessary vocations through the day, they often came to the mission house in the evening and spent much time there on Sundays. It would have been easy to employ the Christian teacher in the school to which Maria Taylor was giving many hours daily, or to take on others at a modest salary to train them for positions of usefulness. But the Taylors decided that doing so, while it might prove a short-term help, could well be a hindrance to their goals in the long run. To pay young converts, however sincere, for making known the gospel, and to pay them with money from foreign sources, would surely weaken their influence in the community, and perhaps also weaken their Christian character. How were the converts ever to know the joy of unpaid voluntary service, service out of love for the Lord, unless the missionaries could be patient and wait for their spiritual development? So Hudson and Maria hoped and prayed that the time would soon come when the call of God into Christian service would become obvious to some of the Chinese Christians, and that when it happened, the other Chinese Christians would themselves be ready and willing to support them. How was China to be evangelized but by the Chinese church? In the meantime, the workload for the young missionaries became a never-ending challenge. Life was full and overflowing with both responsibilities and opportunities. Hudson himself did quite a bit of medical practice, as well as regular preaching in the streets and in the chapel, receiving visitors, attending to correspondence and accounts, and continuing evangelistic excursions into the surrounding countryside. None of those duties were allowed to interfere with what had become his chief task, the daily shepherding of his small but growing flock. After the regular public meeting every evening, three separate periods were devoted to carefully prepared study. To begin, Hudson would teach a lesson from the Old Testament. Then, after a time, a chapter was read from Pilgrim's Progress or some other helpful Christian book. And finally, a passage of the New Testament would be discussed and applied to daily life. This regular nightly schedule for the small band of Chinese believers led up to Sunday with its special services for worship and for reaching outsiders. Sunday had its times of teaching too, for Hudson Taylor and his colleagues knew that it cost the Chinese Christians dearly to close up shop and store on the first day of the week. They wanted to make the most of the time and sacrifice of the new converts. So, between the regular services, Christians, inquirers, patients, school children, and servants were divided into classes and taught according to their particular needs. This made Sunday a heavy day for the missionaries, for there were only four of them, the Taylors and the Joneses, to share the great load. But there was something unmistakable, almost tangible, about their spirit of service and love for the people. It drew more and more people to the Bridge Street Fellowship. Those who came brought others who also sensed the difference in that place, a difference one new visitor recognized when he asked the friend who had brought him, why does my heart feel so much wider when I come into these doors? Perhaps it was because the Taylors' own hearts were as wide open as the doors of their mission to the people around them, for their ministry grew and the promise of an even greater ministry grew with it. The Treaty of Tien Sin, signed in the summer after Hudson and Maria's marriage, opened the way at last to all of the inland prophecies. Foreigners now had the right to travel freely under the protection of passports. Inland China, which Hudson had prayed for for so long, was now within reach, and yet more patience was required. He wrote home in November, You will have heard before this all about the new treaty. We may be losing some of our Ningpo missionaries who will go inland, and oh, will not the Church at home awaken and send us out more to publish the glad tidings? Many of us long to go, and how we long to go, but there are duties and ties that bind us that none but the Lord can unloose. May He give gifts to many of the native Christians, qualifying them for the care of the churches already formed, and thus set us free for pioneering work. As anxious as Hudson and Maria both were to take the message of Christ to the interior, they each felt a prior commitment to the care and nurture of the small band of Ningpo Christians at Bridge Street. Leaving them now, even for the good of others, would have been like a parent abandoning their children in the wilderness. Later years proved the wisdom of this decision. Many of these same poor and unlearned Chinese Christians were to become leaders and evangelists among their own people, and provided invaluable service to Hudson Taylor and his life's work. But at this time, the Taylors' excitement over the spiritual and numerical growth of their little band of believers was mixed with an impatience to fulfill their greater calling to the vast reaches of inland China. Despite the open door to the interior, and the changing tides of the ongoing war, perhaps in part because of these factors, the widespread attitude toward foreigners remained hostile. The outrages of the coolie trade had spread northward, and antagonized many people around Ningpo who heard tales of devil foreigners kidnapping men and boys and shipping them off to far-off lands, never to be seen again. And while neighbors and friends might quickly come to the defense of the Taylors, the missionaries lived constantly with the threat that some rabble-rouser might one day incite a riot crowd to take vengeance on any Europeans to be found. It had happened before in other cities, and given the underlying mood of the country was almost certain to happen again. While there wasn't much they could do for protection, the Taylors did keep a boat moored on the canal at the back door of their house, and the rope was kept firmly tied by their bedroom window that would allow them to escape to the canal under cover of darkness if necessary. Such was the political situation during the second summer after Hudson and Maria were married, when after nine long months of expected waiting, their first child was born. They named her Grace. The thermometer read 104 degrees in the coolest part of the house on July 31, 1859, the day that the little one was born. And only once in the week that followed did the temperature drop below 88 degrees. That was at midnight during a thunderstorm. The political climate remained just as hot. Surging crowds around the mission house had almost rioted a few days before. Cries of, Beat the foreigners! and Kill the foreign devils! filled the air. No one had beaten down the doors as easy as that would have been. Despite the continuing sense of danger, fear wasn't the feeling expressed in Hudson's next letter to home. Instead he wrote, My dear parents, though this is the Lord's day, I find myself able to pin a few lines which will no doubt surprise you as much as it does myself. The reason is that I am at home taking care of my wife and baby girl, your first grandchild. Oh, my dear parents, God has been so good to me, to us all, better far than my fears. Oh, magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together. Though it was still some time before the period of dangerous unrest finally passed, the Taylors' joy over their new baby brought a wondrous new feeling of family into their lives. Yet even in this time of personal joy, there came a sad and unexpected occurrence which added greatly to Hudson Taylor's responsibilities and rooted him still deeper in his ministry at Ningpo. Hudson's former colleague, Dr. Parker, had recently completed construction of his new hospital. Located strategically near one of the city gates overlooking the river, its impressive buildings attracted the notice of thousands daily. For the good doctor who had suffered with Hudson through their difficult beginnings in China, it was the wonderful culmination of years of patient work. The hospital, built to accommodate the needs of the foreign community as well as the doctor's Chinese practice, promised to be the foundation of the Parker's ministry for years to come. But suddenly, the doctor's wife was stricken with a fever. Within hours, she died, leaving her grief-stricken husband with the responsibility of caring for their four small children, one of them seriously ill. Dr. Parker saw no alternative but to take his children home to Scotland. But what was to be done about his hospital? The wards were full of patients and the dispensary was crowded day after day with a steady stream of people needing medical help. No other doctor was free to take his place, and yet to close down with winter coming was unthinkable. To complicate things even further, there was no surplus of funds he could leave to continue the work. Yet, he couldn't bear to see all his years of hard work and preparation go to waste. Perhaps his young friend Hudson Taylor could carry on at least the dispensary portion of the work as a medical ministry to the local Chinese community. That was the proposition he laid before Hudson, who later recalled the experience. After waiting upon the Lord for guidance, I felt constrained to undertake not only the dispensary, but the hospital as well. Relying solely on the faithfulness of a prayer-hearing God to furnish means for its support. At times there were no fewer than 50 inpatients besides a large number who attended the dispensary. 30 beds were ordinarily allotted to free patients and their attendants, and about as many more to opium smokers who paid their board while being cured of the habit. As all the wants of the sick in the wards were supplied gratuitously, as well as the medical supplies needed for the outpatient department, the daily expenses were considerable. Hospital attendants also were required, involving their support. The funds for the maintenance of all this had previously been supplied by the doctor's foreign practice. With his departure, this source of income ceased. But had not God said that whatever we ask in the name of the Lord Jesus shall be done? And are we not told to seek first the kingdom of God, not means to advance it, and that all these things shall be added to us? Such promises were surely sufficient. Since resigning from the mission which had sent him to China, Hudson had many opportunities to exercise that faith he had tried to build up during those years of preparation back in England, days which now seemed a lifetime ago and worlds away. And he was learning that God was just as faithful in China as he had been in England, where half a sovereign arrived in the mail the morning after Hudson had given his last coin to a starving family, and where Dr. Hardy's wealthy patient just happened to drop by to pay his bill at ten o'clock at night in cash. Just one illustration of God's faithfulness needs to be told here. Back when Hudson had been preparing to move from Shanghai to Swatow.