But this happiness did not last long; for in the month of May (1557) James Syme and James Barron, two burgesses of Edinburgh, and his own very devoted friends, arrived with a letter from Glencairn, Lorn, Erskine, and Lord James Stuart, beseeching "in the name of the Lord," that he would return to his native land; and affirming that he would find all the faithful whom he had left behind him, not only glad to hear his doctrine, but also ready to jeopardise their lives and goods for the setting forward of the glory of God. The opinion of Calvin and other friends to whom he submitted this request, was that he could not refuse such a call "without declaring himself rebellious unto God and unmerciful to his country"; and no doubt his own heart had already given a similar response. Accordingly, after making all due arrangements for the leaving of his charge, and for the care of his family in his absence, he set out from Geneva in the end of September, and arrived at Dieppe on the 24th October. He was met there, however, with letters which gave him the impression that those who had invited him to return to Scotland had repented of their action in that regard; and that many of the professed adherents of the truth had drawn back and became faint-hearted in the cause. This brought him to a stand, and he determined to go no farther until his way should be more clear. He {107} immediately wrote to his correspondents, explaining how he came to be at Dieppe, upbraiding them for their fear and fickleness; admonishing them of the great importance of the enterprise to which they had committed themselves; and alleging that they ought to hazard their lives and fortunes to deliver themselves and their brethren from spiritual bondage. This letter is dated October 27th, 1557, and was followed by another of a more general tenour to his brethren in Scotland, which appears to have been written in the same place on the 1st of December. In the expectation of receiving some definite information from Scotland, Knox lingered in Dieppe for some considerable time, and officiated as temporary preacher to a Protestant Church which had recently been formed there. But when no answer came to his appeal to his countrymen, he set his face again toward Geneva, to which, after visiting Lyons, Rochelle, and other towns, he returned in the spring of 1558.