h by force, if need be.

CHAPTER II.

METHOD OF WORK.

Mr. Perkins gained the confidence and won the love of the people by
making himself one of their number, by adopting their customs and
speaking of Assyria as "our nation." In this way he got very close to
the people, they believed him their friend, and were not afraid to come
near to him. In adopting the native dress it must be remembered of him
that he wore the hat commonly worn by aged religious men. It was made
of sheep-skin and was not less than two feet high.

The Assyrians churches were open to the new missionaries and they
preached two or three times every Sunday. There was marked interest in
the new teachers from the beginning, and every service was attended by
200 or 300 natives. In addition to the observance of Sunday the
Assyrians have numerous sacred or saint's days; at such times the
churches are better attended than on Sundays. Services were also lead
by the missionaries on these days. Through every day of the week the
missionaries were busy scattering the blessed seed. When there were no
services held in the churches they would meet in some private home.
Several neighboring families would come in, and all would listen to the
gospel. The writer remembers when he was a boy of Dr. Coan lodging at
his father's home several nights and holding meetings. Our homes were
very humble among the Assyrians. The houses were low and dark,
blackened with smoke from the ovens. The floor was covered with cheap
mats, but some people had a carpet which was spread when guests came.

Most of the families are very large, numbering from ten to thirty-five.
In many instances, five or six sons having married are found raising
their families under their father's roof. The food for all is cooked in
the one oven, but more than one table is used when the family is very
large. The meals set before the missionaries were very different from
what they had been accustomed to. There were no knives and forks, no
tables and chairs. But the missionaries humbled themselves, sat on the
floor, and ate of the poorly cooked food with their fingers.

In summer most of the people were working in the field and vineyards.
The missionaries would visit them at their work and ask permission to
talk for an hour. The workers would gather in the shade of a tree and
for an hour listen to the message. Many times these meetings proved
very beneficial. In 1843 the well known Fidelia Fisk and sev