dred for articles of every
description. I am almost ashamed to acknowledge that I never saw the
interior of our kitchen, but our cook served our dinners in the most
approved manner. We frequently had guests to dine with us and as the
butler, Ning Ping, was as much an expert in his department as the cook,
Ting Ting, was in his, I was delightfully irresponsible and often
wondered, as I sat at my own table, what the next course would be. Our
guests were principally men, usually the senior members of _Hongs_ and
officers of war-ships lying in the harbor, and it was the custom of each
to bring with him his "boy," who stood behind him throughout the repast.

There was quite a number of missionaries in the city, and each religious
denomination provided its ministers with comfortable quarters. The
Baptists were especially well represented and also the "American Board,"
which was established in Boston in 1812. The English residents had a
small chapel of their own which was well sustained by them. There was
one missionary who commanded my especial respect and admiration. I refer
to the Rev. Mr. William C. Burns, a Scotch Presbyterian clergyman. He
led a life of consecrated self-denial, living exclusively with the
natives and dressing in the Chinese garb which, with his Caucasian
features and blond complexion, caused him to present the drollest
appearance. Only those who have resided in China can understand the
repugnance with which anyone accustomed to the amenities of refined
society would naturally regard such a life. He gave up body and soul to
the spread of Christianity in a heathen land, recalling to my mind the
early Jesuits, Francis Xavier, Lucas Caballero and Cipriano Baraza, who
penetrated pathless forests and crossed unknown seas in conformity with
the requirements of their sacred mission. Mr. Burns died in China in the
earnest pursuit of his vocation. I own a copy of his life published in
New York in 1870, soon after his death.

The Roman Catholic Church was well represented in Foo Chow and was under
the general direction of the order of the Dominicans. Each portion of
China, in fact, even the most remote, was under the jurisdiction of
some Roman Catholic Order, so that directly or indirectly almost every
Chinaman in the Empire was reached. The Catholics also had a large
orphan asylum in Foo Chow, over whose portals, in Chinese characters,
was the verse from the Psalms: "When my father and my mother forsake me,
then t