Destitution and ignorance like this may be found all through the South, but just such families have been reached and redeemed by our missionaries, and if all are not reached, it is simply because we do not send the missionaries, for allowing every discouragement that exists the fact still remains that there is no missionary work on the earth so hopeful and so rich and so rapid in its results as work among the colored people South. THE FREEDMEN. REV. JOSEPH E. ROY, D.D., FIELD SUPERINTENDENT, ATLANTA, GA. * * * * * TENNESSEE. INTERESTING EXERCISE IN FISK UNIVERSITY. _By Rev. H. S. Bennett, Nashville._ The first Friday night of the term we listened to reports from those of the students who had taught school during the vacation. It was expected that those who spoke would give as correct an idea as possible of the colored people, their interest in education, the condition of the crops, whether the people were getting possession of land, and all other items of interest relating to their work. President Cravath read a letter from a county superintendent in Mississippi, who bore the strongest testimony to the honesty, morality and efficiency of the teachers who had gone out from Fisk University. Mr. Mitchell, a new student, had taught in one neighborhood for two years, in De Soto, Miss. He had succeeded in building up a successful Sunday-school. He had in his school about 150 pupils and three assistant teachers. The citizens encouraged the education of the colored people and took great interest in his school. Miss Murray had taught in Mississippi for five months. The people were very poor and the children were poorly clad. She taught in the Sunday-school very successfully; she did not think that the people had bought much land, but they had stock and wagons. Geo. McLelland did not wish to exaggerate, but desired to tell the truth. He taught just above Vicksburg, Miss.; here there is little civilization. In their homes, the large majority of the people are virtually slaves; they pay $9 per acre, or 90 pounds of lint cotton for their lands; they raise nothing but cotton and corn, and often come out in debt; they buy their goods at the store on account, on fall time. In most cases last year they came out behind; in this condition they must give a lien on the next year’s work; some do better than this, but the majority are in this wretched condition. Government land is sold at 25 cents per acre, but the colored people do not buy it to any extent; this year they have done something of this, and have secured forty acres of good land. Saturday night the people go to the store and drink up an acre of government land at the rate of 25 cents a glass.