The Assyrians churches were open to the new missionaries and they preached two or three times every Sunday. There was marked interest in the new teachers from the beginning, and every service was attended by 200 or 300 natives. In addition to the observance of Sunday the Assyrians have numerous sacred or saint's days; at such times the churches are better attended than on Sundays. Services were also lead by the missionaries on these days. Through every day of the week the missionaries were busy scattering the blessed seed. When there were no services held in the churches they would meet in some private home. Several neighboring families would come in, and all would listen to the gospel. The writer remembers when he was a boy of Dr. Coan lodging at his father's home several nights and holding meetings. Our homes were very humble among the Assyrians. The houses were low and dark, blackened with smoke from the ovens. The floor was covered with cheap mats, but some people had a carpet which was spread when guests came. Most of the families are very large, numbering from ten to thirty-five. In many instances, five or six sons having married are found raising their families under their father's roof. The food for all is cooked in the one oven, but more than one table is used when the family is very large. The meals set before the missionaries were very different from what they had been accustomed to. There were no knives and forks, no tables and chairs. But the missionaries humbled themselves, sat on the floor, and ate of the poorly cooked food with their fingers. In summer most of the people were working in the field and vineyards. The missionaries would visit them at their work and ask permission to talk for an hour. The workers would gather in the shade of a tree and for an hour listen to the message. Many times these meetings proved very beneficial. In 1843 the well known Fidelia Fisk and several other noble women came to work for women. They would visit them in their homes or where they were at work in the field or vineyard, and while helping them in their work would strive to ennoble their lives by talking of Christian principles. A story is told of a missionary who one day passed a shepherd among his flocks. He asked the shepherd if he ever prayed. The reply was that he did not know how. When the good man offered to teach him the shepherd said it was useless to try as he could not learn. But the faithful missionary was eager to teach truth, even to the dullest minds, and so began teaching him the Lord's prayer. But the shepherd could not memorize it. Remembering how this shepherd knew every sheep in his flock by name a happy thought struck the missionary. He would name a small number of the sheep with words or phrases of the Lord's prayer. Calling the sheep and giving them these new names the shepherd soon learned the prayer, and could repeat it readily.