UR frontispiece this month is a fine picture of the grave of Ann Hasseltine Judson at Amherst, Burma, as it now appears. It will be remembered that when Mrs. Judson died, Oct. 24, 1826, at the early age of thirty-seven, she was alone, having no friends of her own race with her, but only native attendants, and was buried at Amherst under the historic "hopia tree," not a long distance from the shore of the ocean. In the years that have passed, the sea has gradually encroached upon the shore until there was imminent danger that it would invade the sacred resting-place of the pioneer missionary of American Baptist women. Arrangements were accordingly made, and under the superintendence of Miss Susie E. Haswell the remains were removed a distance from the shore and re-interred in the spot of which a picture is here given. Much credit is due to Miss Haswell for the care and taste she has exercised in this task, undertaken on behalf of all the friends of missions. In the picture Miss Haswell is standing at the right of the enclosure, surrounded by her Bible women, while on the other side are two of her native preachers. Miss Haswell is the only American missionary in Amherst, and carries on her work among several different races and in a variety of forms. She is the friend of all the natives, deeply revered by them, ministering to them in their sickness, and having under her care several orphan children. It must be an inspiration to labor amid the scenes which witnessed the closing days, and so near to the spot which holds all that was earthly of the "Heroine of Ava."

ducation in the Philippine Islands is decidedly in advance of education in Spain. In the latter country only seventeen per cent of the people can read and write; in the former only seventeen per cent can not. Filipinos who have studied. abroad have taken high rank. The chief hindrance to the advancement of the people has been the all powerful influence of a corrupt priesthood.

REV. O. O. FLETCHER, D.D., has resigned his office as District Secretary of

the Missionary Union for the New York Central District, and enters upon his duties as pastor of the well-known Baptist Church of Suffield, Conn., on April 1. Dr. Fletcher began his services with the Missionary Union as special assistant to the Home Secretary in 1892 in the preparation for the great work of the Missionary Centenary. After the labors connected with that effort were concluded he was chosen District Secretary for the New York Central District, from which position he now retires. In all his work for the missions, both in the rooms in Boston and on the field, he has discharged his duties with eminent intelligence and untiring faithfulness, and has won the confidence, esteem and love of all his associates as well as of the churches. The Executive Committee have caused to be inscribed on their records the following minute in token of their regard, and Dr. Fletcher reënters upon pastoral work, to which his heart has always been drawn, with the hearty and sincere wishes of all for his great happiness and prosperity:

In the proposed retirement of Dr. Fletcher from the service of the Missionary Union, a relation which has existed since 1892for one year as assistant to the Home Secretary in working out the plans of the Carey Centenary and for five years as District Secretary- the committee hereby places on record its warm appreciation of the intelligence, tact and devotion which have characterized Dr. Fletcher's work and cherishes the hope that, although the official relations terminate, there may continue to be between the Union and Dr. Fletcher the most cordial sentiments of mutual sympathy and helpfulness. The committee also expresses to Mrs. Fletcher appreciation and thanks for efficient assistance rendered to the Union in connection with Dr. Fletcher through all this period.

T he Declination by Dr. King of his election as Corresponding Secretary of the the Missionary Union left the correspondence of the foreign department still unprovided for. Since the death of Dr. Duncan-in fact, since his departure last August for his proposed visit to the missions, this work has been cared for by Dr. Mabie, with some assistance from others in the rooms, pending a more definite provision. In the circumstances the Executive Committee has not exercised its constitutional powers by the election of a Corresponding Secretary to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Dr. Duncan and the declination of Dr. King, but have the satisfaction of having been able to secure the services of Rev. Thomas S. Barbour, D.D., to assist Dr. Mabie in the work of the Corresponding Secretary's Department until more definite arrangements are made. Dr. Barbour as a member of the Executive Committee has intimate acquaintance with the work of the Union, and is able to render valuable aid.

WE

E have to announce that Rev. J. S. Boyden has resigned the office of District Secretary of the Missionary Union for the Lake District, terminating his labors on April 30, one month after the close of the present fiscal year of the Union.

Mr. Boyden was chosen to this position by the Executive Committee of the Union, May 12, 1893, and has performed the duties of his office for these six years with rare devotion and an industry and fidelity worthy of the warmest encomiums, and as free as possible from anything of a perfunctory character. A daughter he freely gave a sacrifice to the cause of missions, and with her beloved form reposing in heathen soil, the word and work of missions have for him a vividness and thrill of personal touch, unknown to many of those most earnest in their love for this great cause. mark of their regard for Mr. Boyden, the Executive Committee have inscribed on their records the following minute :

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In connection with the contemplated termination of the official labors of Brother Boyden the Executive Committee cheerfully puts on record its appreciation of the painstaking devotion, the good judgment and self sacrificing spirit with which he has served this cause. Having given his life in a large and sympathetic way to foreign missions, having devoted a daughter to personal service as a missionary of the Union in Japan until the Lord called her home, the official service of Brother Boyden has been a labor of love, and fraught with blessing to the churches everywere among which he has moved.

A fter this Magazine comes to the hands of its readers there will still be an opportunity to send a contribution to the Missionary Union before the close of the year, March 31. At the date of this writing it is impossible to say what is to be the outcome of the year. Unless the receipts in the month of March are unusally large there will be a deficit, but there are some indications which lead us to hope that the offerings in March will be of exceptional proportions. May it be so. But whatever the outcome of the year, let us face the future with a cheerful courage and an uplifting faith. God is blessing our missions with continued success and our people with returning prosperity. Let us pray and believe that the coming year at home and abroad will be one of the best in all the work of the Lord.

T The Noon-day Prayer-meeting at the Mission Rooms, Tremont Temple, Boston, has received a new helper in an organ sent by The Estey Organ Company of Brattleboro, Vt., to lead in the sacred song. It is of their well-known "acclimatized" style, suited for use in tropical countries. No glue is used, but all the parts are securely fastened by dovetail work or screws, so that it is not affected by the moist and hot climate of the tropics. The name is well chosen.

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N the retirement of Dr. Fletcher from the secretaryship of the New York Central District, that will be united with the New York Southern District, thus bringing the whole state of New York into one field, to be known as the New York District. Rev. Charles L. Rhoades will care for the interests of the Missionary Union throughout the Empire State, and the northern counties of New Jersey will also remain under the care of Mr. Rhoades as at present. The special attention of the Baptist pastors and churches in Central, Western and Northern New York is called to this change, and we heartily commend Mr. Rhoades to their sympathy and coöperation. He will be found ready to respond to all calls for service on behalf of the Missionary Union. Address, Rev. Charles L. Rhoades, 182 Fifth avenue, New York, N. Y.

The retirement of Mr. Boyden also marks an important change in the work of the Missionary Union on the home field. The Lake District has hitherto included the states of Michigan and Indiana. Michigan will, after May 1, be added to the Middle District, which is under the care of Rev. T. G. Field, 14 East avenue, Elyria, Ohio. Pastors and churches in Michigan will find Mr. Field ready to aid them in every possible way in their work for foreign missions. Write to him and call upon him freely.

The state of Indiana, will after May 1, be classed with the district until now known as the Western, or sometimes the Chicago District. This field will now include the great states of Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana, and will be most appropriately known as the Lake District. The representative of the Missionary Union for this district is Rev. E. W. Lounsbury, D.D., 69 Dearborn street, Chicago, Ill., who is already so well known throughout the field that he needs no introduction.

By these changes the collection districts of the Union are reduced to eight, several of the districts become more homogeneous and a considerable saving in expense is effected.

The Advance of China is most strikingly shown in the increased demand for books on western science and learning. To supply the calls for this sort of literature the old printing houses have been overtaxed, and many new ones started. Bookbinders have advanced their prices, and the price of paper has risen. Nineteen books on western learning have been published in Szchuan, the most western province of China, and the number of native newspapers has quadrupled in three years! The Society for the Diffusion of Christian and General Literature among the Chinese, last year printed more than 37,000,000 pages, and the Presbyterian Mission Press in Shanghai printed 45,000,000 pages.

opies of the January Number are needed to supply calls. Any subscribers who do not wish to preserve their copies will confer a favor by mailing them to THE BAPTIST MISSIONARY MAGAZINE, TREMONT TEMPLE, BOSTON, MASS.

B urma as a Field for Christian Missions is unique among the nations of the earth. Geographically and ethnologically it is the key of Eastern Asia. Like a wedge between the great countries of India and China, it partakes of the characteristics and includes the peoples of both. With the developments of Asiatic commerce the great land routes from Southern and Western Asia to all the countries of Eastern Asia must pass through Upper Burma. The races represented among its eight million people are estimated to number nearly fifty; and within its limits are found representatives of every Asiatic as well as many European peoples and those from the islands of the sea. From the increase of converts to Christianity in Burma evangelists may be drawn to carry the gospel throughout Eastern and Southern Asia among all its peoples of every tribe and tongue. It is this mingling of the peoples of the earth within its borders which has given to Burma an importance as a field for Christian missions beyond that due to the number of its people or the extent of its territory. Even in the past it has been a fountain of missionary effort. From the Baptist mission in Burma has sprung the mission in Siam and also that in Assam, and it has long been recognized as the back door of China. Recent political and commercial developments have emphasized the importance of Upper Burma as the gateway to Southwestern China. Two or more railways are already projected from Burma into Yunnan province of Western China, and the commerce of this great region will undoubtedly find its outlet to Europe through Burma. Always recognized as the special field of American Baptists, it offers to us openings of the largest promise for the future, not only for the people of Burma but of all of Southeastern Asia. May we be worthy of our inheritance, of the favor of God and of the splendid opportunities before us.

Superstition in Rangoon.- Rangoon is a large city of nearly two hundred thousand

population, with an extensive foreign commerce, fine buildings and several educational institutions of high class. It seems strange to read of practices in that city which show that some of the people are yet on a level with the fetich worshippers of Africa in religious matters, as appears from the following extract from the Indian Witness:

Not being able to trace anything in connection with the loss of the 2,000 rupees from the cash safe of the Surati Bazar Company, the directors, says the Rangoon Gazette, have resorted to astrology and finally sorcery. Every employe of the bazar was given a mouthful of rice to eat which had been previously put through some magic preparation, the belief being that if the person who had taken the money ate the rice some very great misfortune would befall him. It is not recorded that any of the employes have yet met with a disaster.

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There is still need for the labors of the missionary in Rangoon.

Cablegram from Rev, J. E. Clough, D.D., of Ongole, India, reports 450 baptisms in the month of February. After the famine of 1877, 9,147 were baptized on

the Ongole field in two months.

May the Lord grant that something like that great ingathering may be seen to follow the famine from which our Telugu mission field is just now recovering.