Cylchgronau Cymru

YR Ymcuelydd ]Vttsol Golygydd Lleol—Mr. HUGH ROBERTS, 57 Clare Road. LLYTHYR O INDIA. Fel y mae'n wybyddus i fwyafrif aelodau yr eglwys, mae Cymdeithas Ymdrech Grefyddol Stanley Road yn cynnal athro brodorol ar y Maes Cenbadol ; ac yn canlyn, wele lythyr oddiwrth Mrs. E. H. Williams yn. rhoddi hanes y gwaith yn y rhan honno o'r maes :— Mission House, Maiuphlang, Shillong, Assam, 8 /5 /08. My Dear Friends, While on tour in the district, together with Mr. Williams, I had the pleasure of visiting Nongkjur, or Laitalle, the village where U Nihon is working. You will be glad to know that it is now entirely a Christian village. There is not a single heathen left. At first the village was situated at the top of the hill ; but, feeling that if they meant to win others for Christ they must go to the heathen, the Christians removed into the valley some 2,000 feetlower down, and built there the village now known as Nongkjur. Their aetion was very much blessed, for soon all the heathen came to learn about Christ, and at last have definitely decided to follow Him. The road to Nongkjur is one which it is very hard to describe. I can compare it with nothing at home ; and in order to give you any idea of what it means to visit this place once a year, I am quite at a loss to describe. Perhaps the best definition or description is that verse in the old Welsh hymn :— " Cul yw'r llwybr imi gerdded, Is fy llaw mae dyfnder mawr ; Ofn sydd arnaf yn fy nghalon Rhag i'm troed i lithro i lawr." Those words of dear old Williams exactly describe the path. On either side of us were great ravines of séveral hundred feet in depth, in some places even to a thousand or two feet sheer fall. In some places we had just niches cut in the face of a rock in order to plant our feet, in others a trunk of an old tree with holes cut for, Khasi feet. One false step might hurl us any moment down the chasm. Yet we are tliankful that our Father kept us safely, and guarded our feet with loving care, from all the dangers of the way. We a-rived at the village somewhere about half past two in the afternoon, and after a cup of tea we prepared our camp for thenight. Wliile the men were putting up the tent, several women came to talk to me and to bid me wel- come in their quaint way. We had a service in the new chapel in the evening. This was the opening service of their new building. I am sure you are thinking of the new buildings you have at home. Well now, just try ancl picture our chapel at Nonghjur. The four walls are made of undressed stone fastened together with mud. There is no plaster as yet, and no white-washing either. Those are luxuries that only well-to-do churches can have. The flooring is just the earth beaten hard and level, if possible. The seats are rough planks cut from any trees which happen to be handy at the tiine. The windows are square places left in the four walls, just now filled with grass or plaited Bamboo. Some day, if the white ants have not eaten up the wooclwork, they hope to have glass windows. At present, the prospects are very dim indeed. The roof is at present a temporary one of grass, but they are collecting in order to get a tin one. The door is of plaited Bamboo fastened with a piece of cord. There is no pulpit, and no seat where elders .may sit. Now, how would our friends at home like a chapel like that ? They would be very much upset, I am sure. These people, on the contrary, are most energetic and have by their own labour of love done more, perhaps, than we often do for our churches at home, for they are absolutely free of debt. It is a wonderful work for them, to have built a chapel of stone while they are so poor as to have to live on roots and vegetables. They have no rice, and cannot afford to buy it if they need it,. During that service 31 people were recej,ved anew,—about 23 of them into full membership, and the rest on trial. Some of those baptised were infants, but the rest were adults. Some grown old in the Khasi religion now born anew in Christ Jesus. Is it not enough to make one sing " Diolch Iddo ! " 1 In the morning, while Mr. Williams was examining the school, I went to see the women. We had a meeting in the new chapel. All of them came full of enthusiasm in order to have a meeting of their very own. Several prayed, and one or two spoke very nicely. But the object of the meeting was to get some plan of systematic giving to the Lord. In the Lawbyrtwn Presbytery the woiuen decided to put aside, every morning and evening, one harídful of rice from their rrsual allowance. This rice to