1887-1888
Malta, Egypt, India, Burma…
March 4th, 1888
Bangalore, Saturday 8 am
I left Madras on Tuesday evening last with a dear brother called Fullam residing there and we arrived at this place soon after 6 am the morning of Wednesday. He accompanied me for the trip up and back and is staying at the house of a sister in the Lording residing here. We are about 3,000 feet above the sea level but the climate and country are without exception the loveliest I have ever seen in the world. The hotel too where I am staying is the most comfortable I have met with in the East, so that altogether it has been a few days of enjoyment. Bangalore has the appearance of a town – the comfortable-looking bungalows are scattered over many miles of ground planted with various trees and shrubs and the flowers are simply a blaze of beauty.
The birds commence their music as soon as the sun rises and their various chatter is unlike anything we hear in England, except the rook which abound by millions in every part of India and their roar as deafening sometimes. They are called the scavengers of India.
Fruit of every kind abounds here, strawberries, apples, peaches and the vegetables are as fine as the finest you could select at home – the meat too is very good.
It would be difficult to describe what the climate is like and the only comparison I can think of is the beautiful air you get on the moors of England in the summer months. How I do wish you were here that we might stay for a little rest together.
We have had a meeting each evening during our stay at a very humble cottage where two widows reside who once broke bread with us and some other persons here dropped in – a young lady called Steer wholly devoted to the Lord's work among them and I trust many have been very distinctly blessed in their souls. We return to Madras by night train reaching there about 6 am Lord's Day morning.
God has greatly prospered the business too and have already received some good orders and may get another before leaving. There is a gentleman staying at the same hotel called Price belonging to a very wealthy firm called Henry S. King & Co. of Cornhill – bankers and merchants and Mr Price has just been through India. He has the use of an empty shop near the principal merchants and very kindly offered me a part of it to display my samples, which I accepted and all the business I have done will come through his firm, so that the benefit is mutual. Mr Price was at Madras last week and was brought to my hotel one day and introduced to me by a gentleman called Hanshall travelling through the East for Mappin & Webb [1] of London and Sheffield, who I have frequently met in Egypt and India, so that Mr Price was not a stranger here. He lives at Blackheath and often dines with Mr Frean, he is a nice fellow a few years my senior but a solid man. So you see my visit to Bangalore has been interesting and encouraging in every way. How good is the God and Father of Jesus where all His glory now shines and say this is our Lord God and our Father.
Footnote
[1] Silversmiths – see further here.