Page:Life in India or Madras, the Neilgherries, and Calcutta.djvu/200

172 any well-meaning pious man, especially if he be rough and driving, is qualified for the missionary work, is a most mistaken one. If there is a place where the preacher needs to be keen in intellect, ready in wit, apt in study, versatile in debate, it is India. Though not learned in the studies of the West, the Hindus are far from being the stupid creatures many imagine them to be. Though the labouring classes in the country are often dull, the people, as a body, and the higher orders especially, have minds of great subtilty and acuteness. When they engage with you in debate, they give you no reason to wish your mental powers less. On the contrary, the missionary needs all the wisdom and skill he possesses to avoid being entrapped and put to shame before the people. At times he is forced to lift up to God a silent prayer for an answer wherewith to silence the blasphemies of these Goliaths of Hindu idolatry.

The early morning and the afternoon toward sunset are the times given to out-door preaching; at other hours it would be unsafe to be exposed to the tropical sun of India. Going forth with your books, you can choose your ground, and take for your text any passing