ocrat there was no
appeal, and the mission came to an end. But in the good providence of
God the two missionaries had translated the whole Bible into Buriat; the
Old Testament being printed in Siberia in 1840, the New Testament in
London in 1846. Notwithstanding the suppression of the mission, the Word
of God in the Mongol tongue continued to circulate among the people.

It was to the reopening and development of this missionary work among
the Mongol tribes that James Gilmour consecrated his life. He was
appointed, in the first instance, to the London Mission at Peking, and
that centre formed his first base of operations. He continued also a
member of that mission until the close of his life. He reached the
Chinese capital on May 18, 1870. At once he settled down to hard and
continuous work at the Chinese language, endeavouring also from the
first to discover the best means of restarting the Mongol Mission. The
very full diary which he kept lies before us as we write, and enables us
to understand the varying progress and hindrance, encouragement and
despondency of this time.

'_June 11, 1870._--Mr. Gulick advises me to pay little attention to
the Chinese and go in hot and strong for the Mongolian. I am not
quite sure that he is not right, after all. However, I mean to
stick into the Chinese yet for a time to come with my teacher and
to mix among the people as much as I can. I went out to-night and
with the gate-keeper and two of his companions had a lot of talk,
in which I learned a good lot. I hope to benefit largely by this
pleasant mode of study. Perhaps by this means I may be able to do
them good. Lord grant it!'

'_June 12, 1870._--I am to-day twenty-seven years of age, and what
have I done? Let the time that is past suffice to have wrought the
will of the flesh. The prospect I have before me now is the most
inspiriting one any man can have. Health, strength, as much
conscious ability as makes one hope to be able to get the language
of the people to whom I am sent, a new field of work among men who
are decidedly religious and simple-minded, left pretty much to my
own ideas as to what is best to be done in the attempted
evangelization of Mongolia, friends left in Britain behind me
praying for me, comfort and peace here in the prosecution of my
present studies, the idea that what I do is for eternity, and that