The disturbances of the last twelve months have unfortunately not been without the loss of mission personnel, both European and Chinese. The Church of the Brethren Mission at Shouyang, were early called to mourn the loss of three fine young Americans, and a few months later the English Baptist Mission had to record the death of Dr. Wyatt and Miss Beulah Glasby, both highly valued and experienced missionaries, who were inadvertently fired upon by Chinese guerilla units while on a mission of healing in the North of the province. The China Inland Mission has lost two of its members by illness, Miss Mary Roberts of the Linfen Hospital, and Mrs, Graham Anderson of the Hungtung Bible Institute; but has been fortunate in that none of its hundred or more Sharsi workers have been injured during military operations; ani this certainly not for lack of extracrdinary adventures. Shells and bombs have exploded in mission compounds, schools have been wrecked, trains have been attacked and derailed or threatened by landslides, cities have been surrounded for weeks on end, until. meat and vegetables were unprocurable, and the besieged were reduced to living on flour wita occational doses of cod liver oil for added vitamins.
It is impossible to look back over the past year, as an annns mirabilis without acknowledging that a higher power has been watching over destinies of those who ín implicit faith believed that they were called to stand >y their institutions and Chinese colleagues during a time of unparalleled anxiety and distress. And now that the immediate emergency is over, the missionaries have been pleased to find that, not only much of the former anti-Christian attitude been dissipated, but that from among those who came to find physical refuge on the church compound there are very many who have found as well a spiritual faith, to sustain them through the present stress and strain, and nearly all churches are reporting large additions of membership.
We cannot close this record without referring to still another loss about to be suffered by the missionary body in Shansi, though of happier omen. After a lifetime spent in serving his society and the Chinese church the Rev. F. W. Price now well beyond the threescore years and ten', is leaving Taiyuan to rejoin his family in England. His retirement will be deeply regretted by his col-.|leagues, whom he has served so effectively as secretary, and not less by the other missions to whom he has been so willing to render aid. His coming retirement from active work in China will be tempered "by the knowledge that one of his sons is already in training in London, and hopes on the completion of his cause to join the active ranks of the English Baptist Mission in China, Si sic omnes The journey from London to Paris by air is to be cut down to forty minutes this year. At present it tokes seventy-five. Air France, the French national airline, are tò put what they describe as the fastest airliners in the world on the route.
These machines soon to be delivered, Gre four-engined Potez monoplanes, to carry twenty passengers and cruise at above 250 m.p.h. Other airliners on the Paris route cruise at around 210 mph.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.