“Aye, my dear, that no doubt would be the best.  But where shall we go?”

“I have heard that there is plenty of work in Dundee, with the mills and all.  Let’s sell our things here and move to Dundee.”

“Aye, let us do that.  ’Tis certain it won’t be worse than here for you and the children.”

“Very well, then.  I shall tell the children and we shall move before the week is out.”

When Mother Slessor went outside to call the children, she found Mary seated on the steps with her stick dolls about her.

“Well, Mary dear, what are you doing?”

“I am the teacher and these are the black children of Calabar.  I am teaching them about Jesus.  I am telling them that He saved them from their sins.”

Mother Slessor hugged her little teacher and told her about the move they planned to make.  Then the other children were called and told, too.  There was much excitement, especially when the furniture was sold and the Slessors with their remaining possessions took the train to Dundee.

It did not take long to find a place and get settled.  Mother Slessor at once looked for a church they might attend.  She found the Wishart Church, named for the famous preacher, George Wishart, who in 1544 had preached near the place where the church was built.  Shortly afterward he was killed for preaching about Jesus.

But Father Slessor did not do better in the new home.  He could not overcome the drink habit, and probably did not try very hard to overcome it.  In the meantime a new baby came to the Slessor home.  They called the baby Janie.  How happy her brothers and sisters were to welcome Janie!  Mother Slessor was not altogether happy because she knew there was another mouth to feed.  Father Slessor promised to give up drinking, but that did not mean anything, because he never kept those promises.

The money they got from selling their furniture in Aberdeen slowly melted away.  Sickness came to the Slessor home.  Robert Junior, who was going to be a missionary to Calabar, became sick and died.  Two other of the children also died, and only Mary, Susan, John, and Janie were left.  But even that did not make Father Slessor give up his drinking.  The Slessors had less and less money to buy food.  At last Mrs. Slessor went to work in one of the factories.  Mary had to take care of the home.  But the wages Mrs. Slessor received were very small.  Somehow they had to find ways of getting more money.  When she was eleven years old Mary went to work in the factory, too.  Would she ever get a chance to be a missionary or must she give up that dream?

“Mary, Mary,” called Mrs. Slessor, “it’s five o’clock.  Time to get up and go to work.”

“Ho, hum,” said Mary, “I’m still tired, but I’ll get right up.  I don’t want to be late!”

At six o’clock in the morning Mary was at work.  She had to tend to the shuttles on the weaving machines.  The weaving sheds where Mary worked were damp and dark.  All morning long she heard the whirring of the belts and the clacking of the looms.  In the afternoon she went to school.  By the time she was fourteen years old she was an expert weaver.  She now began to work full time.