When the Mateers and Corbetts came they were, of necessity, lodged in the quarters already occupied by the Mills family. These consisted of no less than four small one-story stone buildings clustered near together; one used for a kitchen, another for a dining room, a third for a guest room, and the fourth for a parlor and bedroom. Each stood apart from the other, and without covered connection. The larger of them had been a temple dedicated to Kwan Yin, whom foreigners have called the Chinese god of mercy. According to the universal superstition, the air is full of superhuman spirits, in dread of whom the people of China constantly live, and to avert the displeasure of whom most of their religious services are performed. Kwan Yin, however, is an exception in character to the malignancy of these imaginary deities. There is no end to the myths that are current as to this god, and they all are stories of deliverance from trouble and danger. To him the people always turn with their vows and prayers and offerings, in any time of special need. Partly because the women are especially devoted to this cult, and partly because mercy is regarded by the Chinese as a distinctively female trait, the easy-going mythology of the country has allowed Kwan Yin, in later times, to take the form of a woman. When the missionaries came to Tengchow, the priest in charge of this temple was short of funds, and he was easily induced to rent it to them. He left the images of Kwan Yin in the house. Just what to do with them became a practical question; from its solution a boy who lived with the Mateers learned a valuable lesson. When asked whether the idols could do anybody harm, he promptly replied “No”; giving as a reason that the biggest one that used to be in the room where they were then talking was buried outside the gate! At first a wall was built around the other idols, but by and by they were all taken down from their places and disposed of in various ways. Mateer speaks of a mud image of Kwan Yin, about four feet high, and weighing over two hundred pounds, still standing in his garret in 1870.