It was ten years before such progress had been made out in the province that it was practicable to hold a presbytery in the rural regions. In a letter to his mother, dated December 24, 1877, Dr. Mateer said: “The meeting of the presbytery in the country marks an era in our progress in Shantung. Many of the Christians from all the region were assembled, and evidently got much good from what they saw and heard. Our presbytery is getting to be an important event, and a power among the native churches. Our desire is that it may be more and more felt.” Sometimes the meetings were saddened by the cases of discipline, after a native ministry began to be enrolled; but if the case demanded it, even deposition from the sacred office and excommunication from the church were imposed, and the native elders and ministers were sturdy supporters of adequate sentences. In contrast with this was the joy of receiving candidates for the ministry, and sending them out to preach the gospel as they seemed to be ready for that work. Occasionally a man up in years, and without thorough education, but apparently qualified to be effective as a preacher, is authorized by the presbytery to “exercise his gifts”; but usually those who offer themselves are young men who after long courses of study, and careful examination, are sent on this errand. For instance, in his report for 1874 as stated clerk, Dr. Mateer said: Considerable time was taken up in the presbytery by the examination of candidates for the ministry. These were thorough, and so far as they went were sustained with great credit. One candidate was licensed to preach. He is not young, as licentiates usually are, being about sixty. He is, however, full of zeal for God, and may yet do good service. One of our licentiates was ordained as an evangelist. This is the first native preacher who has been ordained by this presbytery. It marks a new step in our work, one for which we are devoutly thankful to God. We have no more important work to do than to raise up well-qualified natives to preach the gospel to their countrymen. We trust this one will soon be followed by others. Dr. Mateer was careful to treat the native elders and ministers as the equals of the foreign missionaries, in the ecclesiastical bodies and elsewhere; and as a consequence he commanded their confidence, so that he was able sometimes to render important services by healing threatened dissensions. This, as might be supposed, was especially true of his own “boys,” who had as students learned to revere both his judgment and his fraternal spirit.