_Thursday, Dec. 15._——We are all up early, take a hasty breakfast, pull down the tent, load the camels amid a chorus of roars and growls, and start the whole caravan at 7 A.M. More volcanic peaks. The ground is everywhere covered with balls of iron from the size of a large pea to that of a cannon-ball. The iron is so pure that the natives are able to beat these balls into knives, etc. Now we see our first mirage. It is a beautiful lake, whose surface, scarcely rippled by the gentle breeze, clearly reflects a distant mountain range. The illusion is perfect. We lunch in a cave in a place called Gamoor. We have met one caravan of cattle and another of two or three hundred camels. Our guide stopped to camp about five o’clock, thinking probably that we were exhausted by this time. He looked surprised but pleased when we protested, and informed him that we intended to make forced marches of at least twelve hours every day. On and on we went into the darkness, for it is dark at five. At 7.10 we halted and pitched our camp in a portion of the desert called _Nasbelhedoriah_. Before we arrived in camp there was a commotion. What’s the matter? Nothing, only the cook has fallen asleep and rolled off from his camel! But the shining, round face comes up with a grin, “All right, kutter herak kattir.” We are not half way to Murrat yet, and the water in our “bootleg” bottles and skins is as black as ink. A whole week more before we reach the river! * * * * * THE CHINESE. * * * * * THE STATISTICS FOR FEBRUARY. Figures may be dry, and yet I am sure that a summary of those contained in the February reports from our schools cannot but interest and gratify all friends of our work. No less than 116 new pupils were enrolled in our schools during that month. Change of location or other causes produced the removal from the schools of 99. But the total number enrolled, 726, is the largest total ever reached, and the average attendance, 354, is also larger than ever before. Among the pupils thus enrolled are 119 who give evidence of Christian life. The total number who have become members of our schools during the fiscal year, thus far (_i.e._, from Sept. 1st to Feb. 28th) is 1,375. THE CHINESE NEW YEAR. In the month of February occurs the Chinese New Year Festival——the great holiday period for them of the entire twelvemonth. At my request, our teachers have given me some account of the way in which it was observed by our Christian Chinese in their respective localities.