Mateer was at no time a very prolific contributor to the home newspapers and periodicals. For about ten years, with some frequency, he wrote for “The Presbyterian Banner” letters concerning the work of the mission done by himself and others in China; but after that he was too busy to continue such writing, except at long intervals. Once or twice he sent to the United States more labored replies to what he considered misleading articles that had appeared in such periodicals as “The Princeton Review,” in regard to the condition of things in China. He greatly deprecated laudation of matters Chinese and unwarranted hopefulness as to the immediate future of their country. He was strongly inclined to question the wisdom of the policy which the United States was pursuing in China forty or fifty years ago, and he did not hesitate to express in print here at home his views on that line of topics. Beyond these fugitive contributions to the newspapers and periodicals he published little else in this country, save a booklet or two, one or more of which he prepared for the use of the Board at their request. Sometimes he questioned whether his slight use of the home press might not leave the impression there that he was not doing as much as others who were more frequent in their contributions; but all the same he gave himself to the other work which his hands found to do. Most of his contributions to current literature appeared in China and were written for “The Chinese Recorder.” His articles in this periodical extend over almost his entire missionary life, some of them being brief, but many of them being elaborate discussions of great subjects affecting directly or indirectly the work of evangelization in non-Christian lands. His book on the Chinese term for God was not published until 1902, and, of course, was in English, though with copious extracts from Chinese literature. His only other English book was a review of Dr. Nevius’ “Methods of Missions.”