HUDSON TAYLOR AND MARIA

Hudson Taylor was the first Protestant missionary to penetrate the Chinese interior, and his is a thrilling adventure story which conveys a sense of China in the days of the imperial power. There is the extravagance of the court; the primitiveness of the peasant, the coolie, the rural farmers; the depth of ignorance and superstition and cruelty. Taylor fought against prejudice, ignorance, opposition in the mission as well as among the people he sought to serve. But with the help of his wife, and a resolute hand of trainees, he laid the groundwork for what became the most far reaching of the Protestant missionary efforts before the Communists took over. Though the manner of the telling falls short of the matter's potentials, it remains an inspiring story, particularly for religious study groups.