laces that country in a premier position as far as a foundation for
wise building is concerned. Recently in London, neighbouring Mission
Houses have been getting into touch with each other, and the Conference
of British Missionary Societies and the analogous body in America have
made conference between missions frequent and fruitful. But there is a
long way yet to travel before we can have that comprehensive planning
which the present world situation imperatively and urgently demands.

But just as neighbouring missions should get to know about each other's
work and plans in order that funds may be spent most effectively; so a
world survey is necessary if the command of Christ is to be adequately
obeyed. The unit is the world, and survey in patches may misdirect money
which would have been spent differently if the whole need had been
before the eyes of those who are charged with the responsibility of
administration.

We make bold to affirm that no Society can be sure that it is spending
the money entrusted to it wisely unless it has a satisfactory system of
survey in operation, a system which takes account not only of its own
work but also of the work of others. We go further and say that the
chances are the money is _not_ bringing the maximum return. When world
need is so vast it is time to challenge a reasoned contradiction of this
assertion. If each Society did what in justice to its constituency it
ought to do, a survey of an area such as a province or a country would
be an easy task, and a survey of the world would be neither difficult
nor expensive, and after all, until we know the whole, we cannot
intelligently administer the part.

The missionary enterprise waits for the men who will take the
comprehensive view and become leaders in the greatest and most
fundamental task of all time. Until these leaders appear, mission work,
for those who seek to understand it as a world enterprise, will, as a
layman said recently, remain worse than a jigsaw puzzle!

THOS. COCHRANE.

ANALYSIS OF CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

THE IMPORTANCE OF A DOMINANT PURPOSE.

The modern demand for intelligent co-operation
The same demand in relation to Foreign Missions
The need for a definition of purpose
The failure of our present reports in this respect
Is definition of purpose desirable?
It is necessary for formulation of policy
Societies with limited incomes cannot afford to pursue every good
object
The admission of