ith to believers and unbelievers. They are
well fortified against attack as rational defenders of Christianity and
are prepared to remove doubts which may arise in the minds of sincere
inquirers and wavering believers. Not all of them are such as we could
wish in intellectual equipment or in strength of character. But the
poorest of them are gradually being replaced by better ones; and the
intellectual, moral and spiritual tone of the whole force is constantly
improving. The ordained native clergy are a body of men who are rapidly
growing in efficiency and power. There are 406 of them in South India
alone--nearly as many as there are ordained missionaries in the same area.

A comparison, in South India, between this force of 406 native pastors and
the 585 native priests of the Romish Church shows how well, relatively,
the Protestant Church of South India is supplied; there being one native
pastor to every 1,500 of the Protestant community, while the Romish
priests are only one to every 2,000 of their community.

Some of these pastors are university graduates, and all are men of good
professional training. They are faithful workers and are increasingly
worthy, and enjoy the confidence, of their missionary associates. Among
the native agents of our Protestant missions in South India alone there
are about 100 university graduates, 200 First in Arts (the degree granted
after two years of college work) and 600 university matriculates. This
thorough utilization of a strong, cultured, native agency is one of the
most striking results of the last century's work in that land. And it is
the more remarkable in the case of the women, since a generation ago
hardly any of the weaker sex were in mission employ, while today the
missions of South India alone employ 3,000 of them. It is practically the
creation of a mighty and most faithful and devoted agency in one
generation.

What may we not expect from this great army of native brethren and
sisters, as they shall continue to grow in numbers and in general
equipment, and as they shall be filled with the Spirit of God and be fully
used by our Lord in the redemption of their own people!

2. THE NATIVE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY.

Recent statistics give the total number of Christians in British India as
2,923,349. This is a growth of about 640,000 in ten years, four times more
than the rate of growth of the whole population. And yet there are people
who tell us that the kingdom of our Lord