on such Formosan cross-country journeys.

Soon the pathway changed once more to the broader public highway.
Here there was much traffic, and many travelers carried in
sedan-chairs passed them. And many times by the roadside Mackay
saw something that reminded him forcibly of why he had come to
Formosa--a heathen shrine. The whole countryside seemed dotted
with them. And as he watched the worshippers coming and going,
and heard the disdainful words from the priests cast at the hated
foreigners, he realized that he was face to face with an awful
opposing force. It was the great stone of heathenism he had come
to break, and the question was, would he be as successful as he
had been long ago in the Canadian pasture-field?

The travelers ate their dinner by the roadside under the shade of
some fir trees that made Mackay feel at home. They were soon up
and off again, and, tired with their long tramp, they arrived at
a town called Tionglek, and decided to spend the night there. The
place was about the size of Tamsui, with between four and five
thousand inhabitants, and was quite as dirty and almost as noisy.
They walked down the main street with its uneven stone pavement,
its open shops, its noisy bargains, and above all its horrible
smells. With the exception of an occasional visit from an
official, foreigners scarcely ever came to Tionglek, and on every
side were revilings and threatenings. One yellow-faced youngster
picked up a handful of mud and threw it at the hated foreigners;
and "Black-bearded barbarian," mingled with their shouts.
Mackay's bright eyes took in everything, and he realized more and
more the difficulties of the task before him.