On reaching home another trial assailed her. One of her most trusted servants, mentioned repeatedly as V., proved to be utterly dishonest, and had to be dismissed. Miss Tucker felt this too very acutely. ‘In all my Missionary life,’ she wrote on July 16, ‘I never knew such a year as this.’
Miss Dixie was at this time away, and two or three short extracts from letters to her may be given:—
‘July 18, 1887.—Welcome, dearest Minnie, home! We are to have a picnic in celebration of your return. Please travel in a duli, if the roads are very bad, as they are pretty sure to be. Tell us when and where to send for you. We have had many troubles at Batala since you left,—the unhappy Maulvi not only apostatising himself and family, but slandering his former friends right and left. I have dismissed V., and P. has followed him. A sight of your dear kind face will be a cheer to your affectionate Auntie.’
‘July 30.—What an adventurous journey my dearest Minnie had! Thank God, dear, that you are all safe and right.... I seem always to be asking you to excuse short letters; but the fact is that almost everything is an effort to me. I just manage to get through a little work, but seem not to be able for much correspondence just at present.’
‘Aug. 10.—I am glad that you are well and happy. You must not think that I forget you, because I write little. It is rather a case of “duties thronging round,” and not much strength to perform them.’
‘Aug. 16.—We have had such floods! On Sunday there was no attempt to reach the large Church. There was Service in Anarkalli; but that was surrounded with water. Some went on horseback, some in dulis.’
One letter to Mrs. Hamilton contains a brief description of her own work:—
‘Aug. 31.—I go, you know, to city work in the morning. After our late breakfast I have a succession of people coming. For instance, to-day,—1st, Munshi and four boys. 2nd, A convert came, to read the Bible to me. 3rd, A teacher came, for me to explain difficult English idioms. 4th, Three lads for English lessons. 5th, A fourth lad more advanced. You see, love, that this is not a sleepy life, though in this warm weather I usually get some sleep in the daytime. I like having the dear boys. They have done much to keep the heart green under various Missionary discouragements.’
On the 9th of September, responding to Mrs. Hamilton’s letter upon the unhappy subject related above, she said:—
‘I fear that I cannot share your hopes.... A man who for nearly twelve years passed as a Christian, took the Sacrament not many days before he became apostate, spoke coarsely of the Holy Communion to Muhammadans, and bitterly of Christians, ... seems to me almost past hope. He has, as far as he could, “crucified the Son of God afresh” and “put Him to an open shame.” ... Instead of, as you sweetly write, “bitterly lamenting, like St. Peter,” poor Z. day by day sits by his mosque, deceiving the people.’