ring of clothes was the
true respect for the sanctity of marriage; far above the question of
Sunday observance was the teaching of the love of God.

Foreign missions have come in for plenty of criticism. It is sometimes
said that our missionaries have occasioned strife leading to
intervention and annexation by the British Government, and have exposed
us abroad to the charge of covetousness and hypocrisy. But there are few
instances in which this charge can be maintained, least of all in
Australasian waters. A more serious charge, often made in India, is that
missioners destroy the sanctions of morality by undermining the
traditional beliefs of the natives, and that the convert is neither a
good Asiatic nor a passable European. This depends on the methods
employed. It may be true in some cases. Patteson fully realized the
danger, as we can see from his words, and built carefully on the
foundation of native character. He took away no stone till he could
replace it by better material. He was never content merely to destroy.

Another set of critics are roused by the extravagance of some missionary
meetings and societies: their taste is offended or (we are bound to
admit) their sense of humour roused. It was time for Dickens to wield
this weapon when he heard Chadbands pouring forth their oily platitudes
and saw Mrs. Jellybys neglecting their own children to clothe the
offspring of 'Borrioboola Gha'. Such folly caught the critic's eye when
the steady benevolence of others, unnoticed, was effecting work which
had a good influence equally at home and abroad. Against the fanciful
picture of Mrs. Jellyby let us put the life-story of Charlotte Yonge,
who, while discharging every duty to her family and her village, in a
way which won their lasting affection, was able to put aside large sums
from the earnings of her pen to supply the needs of the Melanesian
Mission.

Let us remember, too, that much of the bitterest criticism has come from
those who have a direct interest in suppressing missions, who have made
large profits in remote places by procedure which will not bear the
light of day. Patteson would have been content to justify his work by
his Master's bidding as quoted in the Gospel. His friends would have
been content to claim that the actual working of the Mission should be
examined. If outside testimony to the value of his work is wanted, one
good instance will refute a large amount of idle calumny. Sir George
Grey, no