great thing to pursue,
Dies ere he knows it.
That low man goes on adding one to one,
His hundreds soon hit:
This high man aiming at a million
Misses an unit."

Here was a man, who had already made a great name for himself in the
world, and might, had he wished, have been far better known, planning
out for himself a future career, the main object of which was to spread
abroad a knowledge of those spiritual truths which had so greatly
benefited him, and that not by the formation of some great society,
some splendid organisation, but by simply putting himself into touch
with some of the humble city missionaries, and, through their
instrumentality, getting at the poor. Witness these two passages from
his letters:--

"_January 8, 1881._--I hope, D.V., to put myself in communication
with some of our Scripture-reader people, and shall try and visit
Christ, who is in the East end in the flesh (Matthew xxv. 34). I
feel this is what I shall like; these truths were not given to make
a man idle."

"_September 24, 1881._--I have been down for two Sundays to meet a
lot of Chinese, and have spoken to them as well as I could. I have
not yet touched on Jesus and His sacrifice, but spoke of God's
indwelling. It was satisfactory, and they were pleased."

It is also interesting to note how, from time to time, he kept on
reproaching himself for not being more alive to his responsibilities,
and making better use of his opportunities to do good. He even seemed
to begrudge himself the few months' holiday he spent in Palestine
recruiting his health and energies. Writing on August 14, 1882, he
says:--

"Fancy, since I left Mauritius, with the exception of twenty-nine
days on board ship, I have been living at hotels, and, I may say,
have not talked of the pearls to more than a dozen people."

And again from Palestine he wrote:--

"You know I do not like idleness; I want to get to a place where I
can find sick people to visit, feeling sure that is the necessary
work for me; I think He will direct me, so I seek no advice
elsewhere. I leave it to God, to decide in His time. I do not like
the ways of the polished world, and my dislike has increased during
the time I have been here."

However much Gordon might reproach himself, it must not for one moment
be supposed that, in the ordinary acceptation of the word, there was
any cause for it. He