When I was asked in the early summer of last year to take up the work which had been commenced by my dear friend Richard Lovett, I think those who made the request had little idea of what they were expecting of me. Certainly I had no idea of the magnitude of the task, or I should not have ventured to add it to the already somewhat exacting duties of my office. Mr. Lovett had, by the aid of Dr. John and other friends, accumulated a great mass of material, and had actually begun to write the life. It was, in fact, the last work he was engaged upon until a late hour of the night preceding his very sudden removal. It was thought that I should simply have to complete, to the best of my ability, the work already well begun. My affection for Mr. Lovett, my intense admiration for Dr. John, and my deep sense of the importance of having the story of mission work in Central China presented to the public at the present crisis, combined to induce me to accept the honour of being trusted to undertake this task.

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