LBTTEE FEOM 
 
 
 Orqomiait, Geog Tapa, } 
 
 Nisan [April] of the English, 9, 1861. ), 
 
 Dear Parents in Christ, Mr. and Mrs. Perkins, Dr. and Mrs. Wright, 
 
 AND Miss Fisk : 
 
 I have a great matter of joy to write to yon, but excuse me for writing one letter 
 to you all five. I wished to write each one of you separately, but on*account of the 
 weakness of my eyes, and on account of the work of God in my village, and visiting 
 the families from house to house, to converse and pray with them (and I also seek out ; 
 all who do not come to church on the Sabbath, and take down their names) ; thus I 
 am so busy, through God’s grace, that it was impossible that I should be able to write . 
 to you individually. I am also copying a lexicon for Mr. Labaree, and, therefore, I j 
 hope you will be pleased to excuse me, all five of you. ^ ' 
 
 On Sabbath day, the last Sabbath of the English March, in the afternoon, priest , 
 Yohannan (John) was preaching, in his turn, about the monthly collection, (which ; 
 was becoming very small,) that it was a shame ; and how much better it would be to i 
 take up more than they had been accustomed to do ; that, if it were possible, there 
 should be a double collection, that a preacher might be sent to the mountains to preach 
 the’ blessed gospel to that part of our poor people. Suddenly, there were whisperings, ; 
 a little on this side, and a little on that side. Priest Yohannan desired them to keep ! 
 still, that there should not be whispering. But God was working in the hearts of the , 
 great and the small assembled in the church. Suddenly, one exclaimed, “I will give i 
 one tomon ” [$2.25] ; another, “ I will give a tomon and a half ; ” another, “ I will give 
 half a tomon ; ” another, “ Twenty-five cents; ” another, “ Three tomons ; ” another, 
 
 “ Four tomons;” one, “A load of wheat,” or, “ Half a load of wheat,” or, “ One meas- 
 ure,” or “ Three measures.” Others promised four half bushels of raisins, or eight, , 
 or one, or three. The women also. One of them gave a monet (a Bussian dollar) ; 
 another three quarters of a dollar ; another, one quarter ; another, two quarters, or 
 one quarter. And others their embroidered headdresses. And others, their jewels, 
 and their rings and trappings. And others, one tenth of the products of their vine- 
 yards, or of the products of their clover fields ; and others, one fourth of their har- 
 vest, or one fifth, or one sixth ; or, one half of the raisins they now had in their houses. 
 
 Another woman gave four pounds of butter, from a poor cow she had. And one 
 poor man, who with difficulty finds millet for the necessity of his family, who was there 
 on that Sabbath, said, “ I have a new mat which I have worked myself ; I will give it.” 
 On Monday he took it on his shoulder, and brought it, and committed it to me. Another, 
 who had come to meeting on the same Sabbath, gave the fruit of fifteen ridges of his 
 vineyard; and another, one tope [12|- English yards] of cotton cloth. And so they 
 went on giving in these various ways, that in the coming autumn, when their fruits are 
 turned out, they may fulfil their vows. And some of them (those who have the 
 means on hand) now give what they pledged. A lay brother who is very poor, who 
 even in these days was asking something from the brethren for the necessities of his 
 family, or a certificate of his need, to have on hand, that he might go to brethren of 
 other villages and beg something, was so much afiected that he pledged two shillings 
 with good-will and joy of heart. 
 
 Many of the brethren spoke, stirring up and inciting those who were in the church. 
 Mill? Eli^s. a bishon 80 years old, snoke : also, priest Yohannan, the elder, priest Yo^ 
 
LETTEE FEOM DEA. MOSES 
 
 ,’kukixs, Dr. axd Mrs. AVrigiit. 
 
 Ml; 
 
 I have a preat matter of joy to write to yon, Imt excuse me for writing one letter 
 to you all five. I wished to write each one of you sejiaratcly, hut on-aecount of the 
 weakness of my eyes, and on account of the work of tiod in my village, and visiting 
 the families from house to hon.se, to converse and ]>ray with them (and I also seek out j»'ought 
 all who do not come to chundi on the Sabbath, and take down their names); thus I ' 
 
 am so busy, through God’s grace, that it was imjiossible that I .should be able to write 
 to you individually. I am also ooiiying a lexicon for Jlr. Labaree, and, therefore, I 
 hojie you will be pleased to excuse me, all five of you. 
 
 On .Sabb.ath day, the last Sabbath of the Knglish Jl.arch, in the afternoon, priest 
 A'ohannan (.lohn) was preaching, in his turn, about the monthly collection, (which 
 was becoming very small,) that it was a shame ; and how much better it would be to 
 take up more than they had been aecustomeil to do ; that, if it were pos.sible, there 
 .should be a double collection, that a preacher might be sent to the mountains to preach 
 the' blessed gospel to th, at part of our poor people. Suddenly, there were whisperings, 
 a little on this side, anil a little on that side. Priest A'ohannan desired them to keep 
 .still, that there should not be whispering. But God was working in the hear.s of the 
 great and the small assembled in the church. Suddenly, one exclaimed, “ I will give 
 one tomon " [S2.2.’>] ; another, “ I will give a tomon and a half ; ” another, “ I will give 
 lualf a tomon ; ” another, “ Twenty-five cents;” another, “Three tomons .another, 
 
 “ Four tomons;” one, “A load of wheat,” or, “ Half a load of wheat,” or, “ One meas- 
 ure,” or “ Three measures.” Others jn'omised four half bushels of raisins, or eiuht. 
 
 ishable pe.arls of this empty worhl. And all their heavy burdens of debt were lighter 
 than a ipnil oi- the leather of a flying bird ; and all their circumstances of trial and 
 annoyance were turned to rest and ease ; and oppressions and extortions were cast 
 aside before the blessed feet of .Tehovah. in the name of his Son Emanuel. AA'hv not ? 
 Shall It not be said, “ Come ye peo])le ! mine ye nations ! together let us prai'se the 
 Lord ; for the Lord (iod is to K' exalted and honored and magnified from everlastiim 
 
 to everlastii 
 
 In the evening, at meeting-time, the men and the women assembled. Some of them 
 their hands embroidered head-garments and ornaments. One of them 
 brought a silvered border (the kind which is sewed on the garments of the females for 
 the bosom), its price being a tomon. or perhaps more. Others, who were not at ineet- 
 ioir b> the church, came in the evening with ledges in their mouths, one saving, “ I 
 1 tomon,” etc.; and another, while in his house, had said, I will o-i(e a load 
 (five bushels) from my own threshing-fioor, as soon as the harvest is out.” 
 ' met him I wrote him down for the load of wheat. Said I. “ It is obliga- 
 neck.] “ 'V es,” he cheerlully answered, “ ves, of course.” On that 
 
 oflfe 
 
 Anil when 
 tovy ” [on yc 
 
 It was a very ileli^htfnl time. Sleep ilepart- 
 joy and tlianksgiviii" to tlje Lord, for tlie ^reat work 
 when we were not looking for all these thinprs that 
 
 one, or three. The women also. One of them gave a monct (a Russian dollar) ; Yonan ; also otlier brethren from our village, and those wlio preach 
 
 conducted the nn 
 eyes that night, from 
 he has done in tlie midst of us, 
 have come to pass. 
 
 _ On the first Jlonday of the month of Nisan (April), in the morning, we went to the 
 city to meeting. I\Iany of the teachers and lircthren and friends were assembled as 
 usual (at monthly concert), and many of them inquired about the work which God 
 done in Geog Tapa, and they marvelled and also rejoiced. The bell rung in the- 
 the Jjirge Hiapel. Mr. Coan conducted the meeting, and 
 uncle, spoke ; .afterwards I spoke ; 
 
 afternoon, and we wc 
 afterward invited us to speak. 
 
 [*riest Yohannan, 
 
 another three quarters of adolbar; another, one quarter: another, two quarters, 
 one quarter. And others their embroidered headdresses. And others, their jewels, 
 and their rings and trappings. And others, one tenth of the products of their vine- 
 yards, or of the products of their clover fields; and others, one fourth of their har- 
 vest, or one fifth, or one sixth ; or, one half of the raisins they now had in their houses. 
 
 Another woman gave four pounds of butter, from a poor cow she had. And one 
 ]) 00 r man, who with difficulty finds millet tor the necessity of his family, who was there 
 on that Sabbath, said, “ I have a new mat whiidi I have worked myself; 1 will give it.” 
 On Monday he took it on his shoulder, and brought it, and committed it to me. Another, 
 wdio had come to meeting on the same Siibbath, gave the fruit of fifteen ridges of his 
 vineyard; and another, one tope [12 j English yards] of cotton cloth. And so they 
 went on giving in these various w.ays, that in the coming autumn, when their fruits are 
 turned out, they may fulfil their vows. And some of them (those who have the 
 means on hand) now give what they pledged. A lay brother who is very poor, who 
 even in these d.ays w,as asking something from the brethren for the necessities of his 
 family, or a cei-tificate of his need, to have on hand, that he might go to brethren of 
 other vill.ages and beg something, was so much affected that he pledged two shillings 
 with good-will and joy of heart. 
 
 Many of the brethren spoke, stirring up and inciting those who were in the church. 
 andi " “ ' ■ 
 
 PfcmuanTtlie younger, Yonan, anti others. Be 
 There were still men and women making pledgi 
 
 n the speeches there were ])r.ayers.l 
 and others that made [dedges a 
 
 second time. 
 
 I will here write for you some of the words that were spoken by a few of them ; for 
 I cannot write all ; a great deal of time would be required. But I will write these, 
 which will suffice as a specimen. One brother of the Sabbath school arose on his feet, 
 and jrletlged a monet (Russian dollar) added to the two (he had given) on his own ac- 
 count, in behalf of his two little sons, whom he had asked of the Lord, which made 
 three dollars. And, .again, after his mother had ])ledgcd an embroidered garment for 
 the face, he rose and said, “ My mother, don’t be .afraid ; pledge more, it is for the Lord. 
 Remember Mary, who poured out the very precious ointment upon the head of our 
 Saviour,” &c. 
 
 Another brother rose and said, “ Two men were discu.ssing together about the ex- 
 
 pense I 
 
 ; undertaking, the building of a church in .lerusalem. or something, I do 
 
 other villages. Here also the glorious finger of the Creator wroimlit 
 ^ondeT'ful works. (Rmbrfimtnvtl garments' of the women ‘anil tffeir ornamenfs,' etc. 
 [those given at Gcog Tapa] were e.xhibited to the whole assembly by John.) Plodn-ers 
 began to pledge money and tilings. The same brethren from our village, who labor in 
 other villages, inerjased and increased ; also other brethren from the villages of the coun- 
 try; also of the laymen who were there. Here also, amid their pledges to inve, there were 
 addresses and prayers. And the amount of giving was after the manner I have de- 
 scribed in our village ; but many others pledged more. One who at first pledged fifteen 
 tomons, again promised all the fruit of one of his vineyards. And aRer a fe"w minutes 
 he rose and said : “ The Father, the Son, and the Holy Sjiirif, the three are oue God. 
 The fifteen tomons to the Father; the fruit of the vineyard to the Son; and a load of 
 flour to the Holy Spirit.” And others, from four tomons to five, and even up to ei^ht, 
 each one. And other.s one tenth of all their produce, one fourth, one fifth, one sixth, 
 and so on. And one of the Nestorians first jiledged a watch, and afterwards thirty to- 
 mons, so that it should be as the price of a robe for the bride (the church of Christ). 
 
 I cannot describe or write the pleasant and jovful speeches, or about the joy of 
 the dear missionaries who were there. Roth the gentlemen and the ladies partici- 
 
 Ldving, wit> * ” ^ i . 
 
 tour hours. Oh, what 
 also < 
 
 I gicrtt juy. 
 
 L delightful til 
 
 The girls of the Female Seminary 
 
 (piite remember about what. Oue of them said, ‘ 1 will give two hundred tomons. 
 The other said, ‘ I, also, will give two hundred tomons.’ Then the first one increasc<l,, 
 and the other in like manner. The first one went up to five hundred tomons, and al- 
 together it became a thousand tomons.” So he talked to incite the Christians, saying 
 that their givings are not for a worldly object, like that of tho.se men, but it is for the 
 Lord, and the setting up of his kingdom and his gospel in our village, and among our 
 poor people, &c. 
 
 Another brother (one who had not been able to sjieak in church from his bashful- 
 ness) rose and said: “My brethren, 1 have a word. Our father Abraham aud his 
 wife Sarah were aged. In their old age God gave to them one only son ; but again, 
 God demanded of Abraham that he should slay him for a sacrifice ; and he listened, 
 aud did as God willed. But the same Abraham was mindful of the covenant of God, that 
 his seed should be as the stars in the heavens and as the sand on the seashore. So he be- 
 lieved, and so he received. We also, my brethren, though we are very poor, and 
 arc under the burden of the oppression and extortion of the Mohammedans, yet let 
 us give bravely of our poverty, and we shall receive of the Lord accordin*T to ouri 
 faith, &c.” : 
 
 My brother George got up and said : “Ye women ! When Moses was building the tab-' 
 ernacle, he asked of the Israelites the expenditures, and they brought them. The womenj 
 also engaged zealously in the matter, and brought the brass on the backs of their mirrors, 
 etc. If you will make your garments a little narrower, or diminish the tinsel bottoms,! 
 it will be very easy for you to give for the Lord," &c. After a little time he spake again : 
 “ Wake up ! Behold the musicians are giving for the Lord ! On their wealth (their,, 
 drums and their pipes) is written, “ Holiness to the Lord!” Here was brought to I 
 embrance a serinou of Mr. Perkins, which he preached in our village to the Sab- 
 
 am, in Tf^^veI?mg^f^n3r^^???!^rtl^'6f^'Iig. Mf ." A^IlbVosc COnui\ctea’Tf;‘ — fWf? 
 were manv prayers and addresses. On Tuesday, the 2d of April, our Father in 
 heaven caused to fall rain and snow ; we could not scatter ; many of the brethren 
 remained in the city, and those other toachens, from the district of Barandooz, came 
 down from Seir, and lieard these tidings. They marvelled and rejoiced. In the 
 evening, again, there was a meeting. Mr. Ambrose again conducted it. There were 
 many' prayers and addresses, and those brethren from Barandooz now' made pledges 
 in great love and promptness : and many othci*s, for a second and third time, made 
 pledges. There is one, w'ho is a joiner, who jiromised to give one month of joiner 
 work. On Wednesday, the 3d of Nisan, the missionaries from Seir came down, verj' 
 joyful. Mr. Cochran met some of them, and said, “ Your faces are very happy’,” &c. 
 So w'as his. 
 
 On the Sabbath, the 7th of April, our Sabbath-school assemblage was very large, 
 and in the afternoon of the same. I j>reached, in my turn, from these words : “ Set 
 your affections on things above.” Col. iii. 2. Again, men and women pledged to 
 give something for the Lord. IMalek Aga Bey pledged, as a second ofl'ering, half the 
 raisins he now has in his house. In the evening many' came to meeting. This, also, 
 was a very delightful day. 
 
 On the 8tli of April, 1 heard, in the seminary in the city, that there were collec- 
 ~tions there again oirSundny, the f th of April. Mar Yohannan pledged thirty tomons. 
 In the village of Vazerova, also, about twenty tomons were collected, as I under- 
 stood, and the people of Dcgala have made pledges of a collection ; also, the people 
 of Charbash, on the 4th of April, were very eager to make pledges ; but I have not 
 heard since whether collections w’cre niaile tlicrc on the 7th of Nisan or not. 
 
 Y’esterday, priest Abraham came from Ardishai. He says there had been a collec- 
 tion there of thirteen tomons, from the readers there, and lie says there are many 
 others still, who will give. Also the peo]>Ie of Takky will make collections on the 
 coming Sabbaths. 
 
 My dear friends, the Lord does not permit that j^’our toils and pains here shall be in 
 vain; and the toils and pains of the missionaries now here. He has heard the 
 prayers of your missionaries, and of all the Christians tliere in America, and of us 
 also, poor, weak Nestorians. The Lord magnifies his work, and advances it here 
 more and more, and in all tlie eastern countries, and throughout the world. 
 
 My' dear fathers, — Mr. Perkins and Dr. Wright, — excuse me that I have not 
 written to you till now. I cannot forget you, nor your good that you have done for 
 me from the days of my childhood till the last. Peace to you, dear friends. 
 
 I trust you will greatly rejoice, in view of the.^ic wonders which God is doing 
 among our people, and that you will not weary'. Perhaps other brethren will also 
 write to you these pleasant tidings. I had never rejoiced so much as I rejoice in 
 
 bath schools. “In that day holiness to the Lord shall be written on the bells of their' these delightful days, the like of which I liavc never seen. All is from the Lord, 
 
 horses,” &c. (because those volunteers, the owners of the camels, wlro were going toj Let millions praise him. I pray that this matter of giving may still iuerease and 
 
 carry raisins which I had bought to Erivan, were detained on the .Sabbath day, and| advance. 
 
 not allowed to start when they were all ready to put on their loads). Perhaps youi My family, and all the people of my house join me in much love to you and your 
 
 will remember it, my dear Mr. Perkins. M chiMrcn. We are much pleased with the new missionaries. They are very pleasant. 
 
 To sum up, there were many addresses ; they remained long in the church, perhapJ We thank them and those wlio sent tliem. 
 more than three hours, when we went out, and saw all the faces of the men and The amount of collections in our village is about seventy tomons, — perhaps more, 
 women changed to joy and gladness, and their color and countenance like roses and-l besides the tithes of the produce, and the ornaments, and the garments, &c. But the 
 
 open blossoms ; the depth of their poverty and low estate seemed like a pleasant val-i amount of the collections in the city I do not well know. I think it maybe 300 
 
 ley of flowers, and full of fatness and spiritual enjoyment, and in the midst thereof all tomons or more, besides the seminaries, &e. 
 
 l>reciou8 hid treasures laid open, more precious than gold and silver and all the per- Your loving friend, MOSES. 
 
 rofDoacon Moses (which he has hnd liieDiiidness to translate), to the end that others may share with him the joy afforded by its simple story, 
 debf ^ do in Tersia, that the same “ grace of God ’’bestowed upon our churches, would keep the Board from 
 
 * Dr. Perkins has sent to the 5Iis.‘!ionarv lloiifi 
 It may possibly occur to Christians in the United 
 the pomsihility of closing the jireseut tinuncial ye* 
 
 ‘^551 t’L