school is arranged to cover the double course
required by Chinese and Western standards. The capacity for memorising
possessed by the Chinese is well known. A Chinese classical scholar's
memory is so trained for retentiveness that one who became a Christian
was able, with ease, to commit to memory five chapters of the New
Testament each day. Were it not for this capacity the mastery of Chinese
would be an impossibility, for a small child of ten years old, in
addition to ordinary general subjects as taught in an English school,
is required in a term of three months to learn to write and recognise
five hundred new Chinese characters, and by the time she has completed
her course can repeat by heart the greater part of the New Testament,
Psalms, and the classical works of Confucius and Mencius.

The Chinese are extraordinarily observant, and it is difficult to
mention anything which has escaped their notice. Nevertheless, the
classification of their observations in a scientific form of nature
study is an entirely new method to them, though this gift, once
developed, should cause China ultimately to rank high in the world of
science. The girls' restricted surroundings have yielded new joys since
they learned the delight of an observation beehive, the ramifications of
an anthill, and the notes and habits of the birds which visit us. A
thorough knowledge of the Scriptures is considered of primary
importance, and only girls who by Christian character give promise when
trained of being missionaries to their own people, are accepted as
Normal Students. During the course outlines of Old and New Testament are
studied, with detailed work of selected books. The students are required
to prepare their own analyses of various books, following the system of
Dr. Campbell Morgan's Analysed Bible.

The many classes which constitute the Elementary and Secondary schools
form the training-ground for the necessary practice in teaching, which
aims at being very thorough. The first lesson, given in the presence of
a critical audience, is no small ordeal to the student who after
elaborate preparation with diagram, blackboard, plasticine, or
sand-tray, will realise when the moment of free criticism comes, that in
her nervousness she has omitted to make any use of that on which she had
bestowed so much labour. Gradually, however, a new class emerges from
utter helplessness into an encouraging self-confidence and
resourcefulness.

[Illustration: S