OB nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Bibfiotheel^-

� 0 sinff unto the Lord a new sonff ; sing unto tJw Lord otZI Me earth ;declare His glorg among the Heathen, His wonders among all people ;say among the Heathen thatnbsp;tfjt Vot�) rtignetl).� Ps. xcvi. 1, 3,10.

� Hot liy might, nor hy poteer, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.� Zech. iv. G.

Any profits vAiich may be derived f rom the sale of this work, will be devoted to the cause of Missions.

It is designed by the Compiler of this � Missionary Guide-Book,� that it should form an accompaniment to, and be explanatory of, the � Protestant Missionary Map of the World �and the great object innbsp;preparing both one and the other, is to make missionary intelligencenbsp;more accessible, than heretofore it has been, to all classes of thenbsp;Christian community. The delineation of missionary character, andnbsp;the details of missionary labour, and, under God, its results�embracednbsp;in this volume, are taken from a great variety of the most authenticnbsp;and approved sources,�and will, it is hoped, be found to give, especiallynbsp;to the young, and the uninformed upon such subjects, a consecutivenbsp;and condensed view of the state, and spiritual wants, of the world.nbsp;The Statistical Tables are compiled with great care from the Annualnbsp;Reports of the different Missionary Societies,�still, inaccuracies willnbsp;doubtless be discovered, both in the Book and Map, for which the compiler must beg the indulgence of the Reader. In the event, however,nbsp;of a second edition of the book being called for at any future period,nbsp;any hint kindly communicated as to discovered mistakes and inaccuracies,nbsp;will be gratefully received, and carefully attended to. It may be well tonbsp;mention here, that the statistics included in the � Tabular Views ofnbsp;Missionary Stations� are (with only some few exceptions) carried downnbsp;to the end of the year 1844, the compiler having experienced some unavoidable delay in the completion of the work.

The � Protestant Missionary Map� has been coloured, with a view to shew the average proportion of Heathenism, Mahometanism, andnbsp;Christianity existing in the world at the present time ; but to pourtraynbsp;the exact truth on such a Map would be impossible. The Tables ofnbsp;Population at the foot of the Map have been compiled from the mostnbsp;approved authorities, as Montgomery Martin, Murray, amp;c. ; and wherenbsp;these writers have greatly differed in their statements, the mean numbernbsp;between the two has been preferred.

It only now remains for the writer to add the expression of prayer, that it may please God, even through this imperfect undertaking, tonbsp;call forth a deeper, more extended, and more powerful effort for settingnbsp;forth His own glory, and the salvation of all mankind.

Principal Object of this Work.�The Geographical order pursued in it (see � Key Map.�) �Reason for including Europe in our Survey,�Natural Productions.�Mines.�nbsp;Climatenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;page 1

Europe the scene of the Reformation.�Popery�� still prevalent in France, Austria, amp;c.� Short Sketch of the Church of the Moravians or United Brethren,�Brief History ofnbsp;the French Protestant Church.�Some account of the Jews, and their form of Worship.�Christian Congregation at Jerusalem.�Dispersion of the Jews through thenbsp;World, and thoughts of Christians concerning them ..... page 2

Labours of the Wesleyan Missionary Society in Ireland and France'�at Gibraltar and Malta.�Origin and labours of the Soci�t�s Evang�liques of Geneva and Paris.�nbsp;Formation of Foreign Aid Society.�Rise, Progress, and Labours of the Londonnbsp;Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews.�Its difficulties, Funds, andnbsp;Stations on the Continent.�Tabular View of Missionary Stationsnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 11

Short Geographical description of Liberia, Sierra Leone, and British Possessions on the

Various African Tribes, how governed.�The Slave Trade'�abolished throughout all the British Colonies.�Sierra Leone Colony, its population, exports and imports.�American Colony of Liberia, its extent, design, and population.�British Trade on thenbsp;Guinea Coast.�Ashantee, its population and government.�First Expedition of thenbsp;British to the River Niger, and causes of its failure.....19

Condition, dwellings, and dress of the African Tribes�their ignorance and general character.............

Objects of Worship of the Pagans of Western Africa.� Fetische Worshippers,�Religious Customs of the people of Ashantee.�Human Sacrifices.�Heathen Priests.� Comparative prevalence of Paganism and Mahommetanism.�Mahometan Priests, andnbsp;ignorance of the Natives .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.........page 23

Attempt of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in 1761, to benefit the Natives of the Gold Coast.�Church Missionary Society�s first Mission, that to Sierra Leone,nbsp;commenced in 1804.�Fourah Bay Institution.�Simeon Wilhelm.�Mr. Bickersteth.nbsp;�Number of Communicants.�Mr, Samuel Crowther.�Wesleyan Mission to thenbsp;Tribes on the River Gambia.�Native African Society formed by Negro Youths.�nbsp;Wesleyan Missionary Society sends Missionaries to Ashantee.�Liberia Colony.�nbsp;Efforts of the American Board of Missions to the Gold Coast ; the Mission removednbsp;to the Gaboon River ; difficulties of the work,�The Slave Trade and Popery.�Baslenbsp;Missionaries sent to labour in Western Africa.�Converted African Negroes sent fornbsp;to the West Indies, to form a Missionary Colony on the Coast of Guinea.�Tabularnbsp;View of Missionary Stations.........p�ige 26

Cape Colony.�Geographical description.�Animals.�Climate.-Soil.�Flowers and

First Discovery of Southern African Coast.�Occupation by the Dutch.�French Settlers. The Colony taken by the English.�Population.�British forces.'�Laws.�Products.nbsp;�Emigrants.�Dutch Emigration to Port Natal......34

Dutch Settlers.�Slaves.�Native Tribes ; their occupations, dwellings, dress, treatment of Females, food.�Habits and dwellings of the Bushmen.�Namaquas.�Damaras andnbsp;Griquas.�The Caffre Race.�Superiority of the Becbuana Races .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 35

Superstitious Character of Religious Worship in South Africa.�Malays profess Mahometanism at the Cape.�The Dutch are of the Reformed Church.�Many Roman Catholics at the Cape..... page 37

Gospel Propagation Society.�Church Missionary Society.�Attempt to evangelize the Zoolahs ; its failure.�Labours of the United Brethren.�Labours of London Missionary Society.�Jan Tzatzoe.�Comparison of South Africans with early Britons.nbsp;�Mission of the French Protestants in 182,9.�Progress of Missionary Efforts at thatnbsp;time.�Treaty with Griqua Chief.�An unprejudiced Testimony.�Tabular View ofnbsp;Missionary Stations...........page 38

Origin of the Madagasse Population.�History of the Sovereigns from 1828.�Political Character and Power of the People of Madagascar.�Exportsnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 46

State of Civilization of the Madagasse ; Houses, complexion, dress . nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 47

Their ideas of a Divine Being.�Their Idols, Sorceries, Sacrifices . nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 49

London Missionary Society�s Labours in Madagascar, from 1818 to 1837 nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 50

Appearance, and Climate, and Fruits of Mauritius.'�Size, amp;c. of Zanzibar . page 52

Possession by the French, and subsequent Conquest by the English of Mauritius.� Population.�Zanzibar...............

Neglect of the Slaves of Mauritius.�Roman Catholicism in this island and the Sechelles.

Character and Habits of the Greeks ; of the Turks and Arabs ; of the Armenians ; of the Maronites, Druses, and Copts.�Use of the Greek and Turkish Languages page 66

Short Account of Mahometanism.�Creed of the Greeks ; Nestorians, Armenians, Jacobites, Copts, Abyssiniens, and Maronites.�The Druses.�The Jews . page 68

Kflforts in the East of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge and of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.�Church Missionary Society in Malta ; Syra.�nbsp;Bishopric of Jerusalem established.�Church Missionary Society Schools at Cairo.�nbsp;Church Missionary Society�s Mission in Abyssinia and East Africa.�Attempt ofnbsp;United Brethren to settle in Egypt, in 1756.�Establishment of American Board ofnbsp;Missions in Palestine, amp;c. ; and of the Episcopal American Society in Asia Minor�nbsp;Tabular View of Missionary Stations-.......page 79

The United Brethren�s Mission in Asiatic Russia.�Russian Bible Society.�Efforts of Scottish Missionaries, and of German Missionaries, in Georgia, amp;c.�Decline andnbsp;Abandonment of the Missions in Tartary.�Tabular View of Missionary Stationsnbsp;page 98

Boundary, Extent, Divisions, and General Appearance of British India.�Physical Features, as Rivers and Mountains ; its Towns, Climate, Soil, Vegetable Productions.� Minerals.�Animals and Insects.........page 107

Early History under the Mahometans.�First formation of the East India Company.� History of British acquisition of Territory in India.�Troops.�Sepoys.�Mahometannbsp;States.�Finances.�Trade.�Government by the East India Company, its powers.

Civilization of the Hindoos.�Agriculture.�Manufactures.�Dress.�Social State.�State of the Females.�Food.�Dwellings.�Character.�Caste.�Immorality of the People.

Division of the Subject.�1st The Gods and Goddesses of the Hindoos ; Brahma, Vishnoo, Siva, and others.�Inferior Deities.�2ndly. Religious Festivals ; Hindoo and Mahometan Processions, Roman Catholic Errors, Swinging Festival.�3rdly. Caste.�nbsp;4thly. Pilgrimagesand Self-Torture of the Hindoos.�5thly. Their Priests and Sacrednbsp;Books.�Gthly. Their Idol-Temples and Pagodas.�Devil-Worship in Tinnevelly.�nbsp;Concluding Remarkspage 132

First Mission to Tranquebar, by Ziegenbalg.�Followed by the labours of Swartz, in 1750. -Succeeded by Kolhoff, in 1801.�Christians in Tanjore.�First Efforts of Christian Knowledge Society in Bengal, in 1766.�Dr. Carey.�Church Missionary*^ Societynbsp;commences Missions in India, in 1815.�Abdool Messeh at Cawnpore.�Henry Martyn,nbsp;1810.�Calcutta Schools, in 1822.�Orphan Refuge, 1833.�Occupations of a Missionary in India.�Decay of Idolatry.�Kisbnagur.�Missionary Labours in the Southnbsp;of India.�Dr. Duff.�London Missionary Society.�Church Missionary Society innbsp;Tinnevelly.�Rheniusand Schmidt, in 1820.�Opposition.�Catechists.�Native Churchnbsp;Building Fund, amp;c.�First Female School at Palamcotta, 1823.�The Syrian Christians; their origin; early History ; Buchanan visits them in 1806.�Colonel Munro.nbsp;�Rev. T. Norton, 1816.�Cotym, or Cottayam, College, 1818.�Labours of Rev. J.nbsp;Bailey.�Cochin, and Jews.�Mr. Ridsdale, 1825.�Fallen State of the Malabarnbsp;Churches.�Mar Athanasius.�Mavelicare Station.�Mr. Peet, 1838.�Madras andnbsp;Bombay.�Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, 1836.�Church Missionary Institution in Madras.�London and Wesleyan Societies in South India.� Bombay.�nbsp;Ladies� Society for Promoting Female Education in the East.�German Missionary-Labours on the Malabar Coast.�Tabular View of Missionary Stations . page 142

Size and General Appearance.�Colombo.�Trincomalee.�Batticaloe and Batticotta.� Cultivation and Vegetable Productions.�Animals.�Climatenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� page 161

Early Possession by Portugal, 1518 ; by Holland, 1603; by Great Britain, in 1803.� Made a British Colony.�Its Government.�Population.�Inhabitants, viz. Cinghalese,

Character of the Cinghalese.�Their Personal Appearance and Dress.�Neglect of their

Short Description of the Creed of the Boodhist, from a Heathen Narrative.�Awful Delusions.�Effect of Boodhism.�The idol Gaudma.�Priests.�Brahmin Festivals in

Church Missionary Society�s Mission, 1818; Kandy, Baddagame, Nell ore, Cotta.�The American Board of Missions, 1816 ; Jaffna, Batticotta.�Wesleyans in Ceylon, 1813.nbsp;�Exertions of the British and Foreign Bible Society.�Tabular View of Missionary

Extent and General Appearance of the Country.�Names of British Possessions ; Arra-can, Rangoon, Maulmein, amp;c.�Pegu and Prome.�Pagodas.�Soil.�Trees.�Oil-Wells.�Ava.�Vegetable Productions of Burmah.�Animals nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 176

Government of the Burmese Empire.�Revenue.�Officers of State.�War between Great

Character of the Burmese.�Tlie Karens.� Language and Education of Burmah.�Dress, Food, and Houses of the Peoplenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;page 186

Extent of Boodhism.�Its Principal Features.�Sacred Writings relating to Boodhism.

Idol Houses, or Zayats.�Pagodas.�Monasteries.�Priests.�Offerings.�Intolerance

Commencement and Progress of the American Baptist Mission to Burraah, by Mr. and Mrs. Judson, 1812.�Notice of the British Baptists at Akyab, and of the London Missionary Society�s Stations at Penang, Malacca, and Singapore.�Conclusion of thenbsp;History of the American Baptist Mission in Burmah.�American Presbyterian Mission in Siam.�Tabular View of Missionary Stations.....page 195

General Features of China ; its Rivers, Natural Productions, Populousness.�Description of Canton, of Macao, Hong Kong Island, of Formosa, the Loochoo Islands.�The Fivenbsp;English Ports.�Vegetable Productions.�Animals.�Climatenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 202

Early Chinese History.�Jesuits banished.�Trade with Foreign Nations.�Recent alliance with England.�Government of the Empire.�Public Offices.�Unmilitary Character of the Nation.� Population, Trade, and Commerce .... page 210

Personal Appearance of the Chinese ; their Character.�Literature, Language, Books, Arts of China.�Curious Map of the World.�Manufactures.�Tea-Plant.�Houses.�nbsp;Customs of life ; Dress, Food, Amusements.......page 216

Early Notions.�Three forms of Worship in China; Ist. The State Religion (founded by Confucius) ; 2ndly. Taouism ; 3rdly. Buddhuisni (or Boodhism).�Images, Temples,nbsp;Altars.�Religion of Tartary and Thibet.......page 224

Early Mission of the Portuguese Jesuits to China ; their Influence.�First awakening in England in behalf of China, 1806.�Mr. Morrison sent by London Missionary Society.nbsp;�He translates the Scriptures into Chinese.�First Efforts of American Board of Missions, 1830.�State of the Missions in 1832.�Obstacles and Encouragements.�American Episcopal Society�s Efforts, 1835.�Mr. Gutzlaff�s Letter.�Chronological Tablenbsp;of Events relating to the Missions in China, from 1815 to 1844.�Late Edict of thenbsp;Emperor of China.�Church Missionary Society sends two Missionaries to China.

Appearance, Productions, and Climate of the Japan Islands.�Their Inhabitants and their Character.�Sumatra, Java, the Moluccas, Timor, Borneo, and the Philippines.�nbsp;Tabular View of Missionary Stations.......page 240

General Features of the Country.�British Colonial Territories in New Holland.�Adelaide; Port Philip.�Vegetable Productions.�Climate .....page 248

Penal Settlement of Botany Bay, or Sydney, formed in 1788.�Population.�Govem-ment. �Military Force.�Revenue........pagg 250

SECT. HI. amp; IV.�SOCIAL HABITS AND MANNERS, AND SUPERSTITIONS AND FORMS OF WORSHIP,

Character and appearance of the Aborigines of New Holland ; their numbers and dis-position ............. page 252

Wesleyan Missionary Society sends Labourers to Australia, 1821.-The London Missionary Society, its labours at Moreton Bay.�Church Missionary Society, its attempt to educate the Natives. Mr. Threkeld�s translation of St. Luke�s Gospel.�Messrs.nbsp;Watson and Handt, their labours relinquished, 1840,�German Missionaries at Moretonnbsp;Bay.�Sad Condition of the New Hollanders ...... page 256

Description of the Northern Island.�Timber Trees, and other productions.�Mountains.

Captain Cook�s visit in 1774.�Mr. Marsden and English Settlers, in 1814.�Chiefs and Slaves.�Wild uncultivated state of New Zealand at this time.�Affection ofnbsp;Natives for Rev. S Marsden.�Their Wars.�Taboo System.�Chief�s Letter in 1832.nbsp;�Consul sent to New Zealand.�Captain Hobson appointed Governor in 1840.�Newnbsp;Zealand Company,�Treaty with England entered into by some of the Native Chiefs,nbsp;1840-41.�Cession of the Islands to Great Britain.�Population .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 262

Character of the People.�Opinion of Mr. Marsden, in 1820, verified by that of the Bishop of New Zealand, in 1842.�Chiefs Shunghee and Wykato, 1820.�Furthernbsp;Description of the New Zealanders ; Cannibalism, Priests, Rites and Ceremonies, Tattooing.�Their strong affection for their Children shown by cutting themselves.-Their ideas of God.�Occasion of their bloody Wars.-Their personal appearance,nbsp;Dwellings, Females.�Increased Wealth and Civilization of the New Zealanders.

Mr. Marsden's first attempts in behalf of the New Zealanders. �Location of three English Settlers as Catechists.�Purchase of Land.�Mr. Kendall�s labours and difficulties,nbsp;with Messrs. Hall and King.�Rev. J. Butler joins the Mission, 1818.�Quickness ofnbsp;the Natives.�Paramatta Institution.�Chief Tcterree�s Letter to Mr. Bickersteth.�nbsp;Mr. Marsden�s exertions.�Rev. H. Williams, 1822.�Improvement of Native character.�-Wesleyan Mission, began 1821.�First Native Baptism, in the Church Missionary Society, 1825.�Death of the first convert, Rangi.�Noble conduct of Chiefs to thenbsp;Wesleyan Missionaries.�Preaching in Native language, 1828.�Mr. Davies finishesnbsp;portions of the Scriptures in the New Zealand language, and the Liturgy, in 1829.�nbsp;Chapeland School erected.�Baptisms.�Native Letter.�Printing-press sent out, innbsp;1830.� Mr. Preece. �Anecdote.�Number of Chapels and Scholars in 1833.�Captainnbsp;Jacob�s Testimony.�New Station formed.�Native Boys.�Speech of a New Zealandnbsp;Woman.�Mr. Bushy sent as Consul.�Sentiments of Natives.�Progress; numbers ofnbsp;Scholars, amp;c. in 1836.�Mr. Marsden�s seventh and last Visit to the Island, 1837.�nbsp;Bishop of Australia.�5000 copies of New Testament printed at Waimate.�Contrast ;nbsp;Roman Catholics ; value put by the Natives on our Liturgy.�State of Mission innbsp;1839 ; Natives employed as Teachers ; Baptism of a Native Priest ; Native observancenbsp;of the Sabbath.�Appointment of Bishop Selwyii to New Zealand.�Latest accountsnbsp;from New Zealand.�Tabular View of Missionary Stations �nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;�nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;? page 276

Names of Groups in the Pacific.�Society Isles.�General description of South Sea Islands. �The Harvey Group.�Vegetable Productions of the South Sea Islands.�Navigators�nbsp;Isles.�Bread-fruit and Cocoa-nut trees.�Animals.�Sandwich Isles.�Friendly Isles.

Discovery in 1767.�Tahiti ; visited by Captain Cook.�Dr. Haweis.�Notions of Government in South Sea Islands.�Tahitian Code of Laws.�South Sea Islands not taken possession of by Britain.�Unjust aggression of the French on Tahiti.�Population.�nbsp;Commerce.�Advantages secured by the Gospel in the South Sea Islands . page 304

The two different Races inhabiting the South Sea Islands ; Population, Character, Superstitious Customs, Wars, Revenge.�Ingenuity of the Natives; their Houses, Dress, Food.�Conceit of the Islanders.�Manufactures.�Rites of the Dead .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 308

Objects of adoration, and Offerings of South Sea Islanders.�Self-inflicted Torture.� Human Sacrifices; Infanticide.�Their fear of Demons; Satanic agency.�Theirnbsp;Taboo Laws.�Morais, or Temples........page 314

London Missionary Society ; its first Mission, that to the South Sea Islands, 1795.� Failure of the first attempt ; the � Duff � captured by the French.�Dangers and Trials ;nbsp;Mission nearly abandoned ; renewed from Home.�Pomare�s father dies in 1803 ; P�mare (his son) solicits Baptism in 1811.�Commencement of religious inquiries.�Pomarenbsp;retunis to Tahiti.�Idols destroyed.�Rapid progress of the true Religion in Societynbsp;Islands.�State of Mission, 1817.�First Translations into Tahitian.�Pomare�s Missionary Meeting.�Promotion of industry by the Missionaries.�Pomare�s new Code ofnbsp;Laws.�Tyermanand Bennett�s Visit.�State of Mission, 1820.�Mr. Brown�sremarksnbsp;on the Conversion of these Islanders.�First attempt for Tonga and the Friendly Isles,nbsp;also Marquesas.�Remarkable Circumstance attending the Tahitian Mission.�Progress of the Truth through the different groups of Islands ; at the Austral and Harveynbsp;Isles.�The � Messenger of Peace � sails to the Navigators' Isles.�Captain Walde-grave�s Visit to Raiatea; and that of Lord Byron, 1824.�Chief of Tongatabu.�Savaiinbsp;first visited, 1830.�A Prayer.�Bible Society�s and Religious TractSociety�s assistance;nbsp;Samoan Testament completed.�Tahiti Mission relinquished.�The Marquesas.�American Board of Missions send Missionaries to the Sandwich Isles, in 1820; State ofnbsp;this Mission in 1825, and in 1830.�Translations.�Death of the Queen of the Sandwichnbsp;Islands, 1823; her History.�Conversions.�Account of Keopuolaiii.�Tabular Viewnbsp;of Missionary Stations...........page 318

Division of the Subject.�Statistical account of all the West India Islands.�General Description of, 1. Barbadoes ; 2. St. Christopher�s; 3. Nevis; 4. Antigua; 5. Anguilla; 6. Jamaica; 7. Virgin Isles; 8. Tobago; 9. Honduras; 10. Montserrat; II.nbsp;Dominica; 12. St. Vincent�s; 13. Grenada; 14. Bahamas; 15. Trinidad; 16. St.nbsp;Lucia; 17. Bermudas; 18. Hayti, or St. Domingo; 19. Cuba; 20. Porto Rico; 21.nbsp;Guadaloupc, Martinque, amp;c. ; 22. St. Thomas, St. Jan, and St. Croix ; 23. St. Martin,nbsp;St. Eustatia, Cura�oa, amp;c. ; 24. St. Bartholomew ......puge 342

First Discovery of the Bahamas by Columbus.�Further Conquests by Spain.�Settlement and Colonial History of all the British Islands in the West Indies, in the same order as in the previous Chapter ; and of the Islands settled by Spain, France, Holland, Denmark, and Sweden, in similar succession ..... page 354

Brief Notices of the Aborigines of the West Indies.�Origin of the Slave-trade; its baneful effects.�Abolition of Slavery, in 1834.�Death of Mr. Wilberforce.�Slave-trade Abolition Act, passed 1807.�West India Planters.�Manufacture and Commerce.nbsp;Social Condition of the Negroes ; their liberality in the cause of Missions . page 364

Religious Destitution of the Negroes before 1754.�Ideas held regarding them in Great Britain.� First attempts to preach the Gospel, and the hindrances and oppositionnbsp;encountered by the Missionaries in Barbadoes, St. Christopher�s, amp;c. ; including thenbsp;Labours of the United Brethren and the Wesleyans, in nearly all the Islands ; and ofnbsp;the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in Barbadoes, Jamaica, Antigua, Tobago, Trinidad, amp;c. ; and of the Church Missionary Society in Antigua, Jamaica,nbsp;and Trinidad............png� 371

General aspect of the Country ; Rivers, Cultivation, amp;c.�Climate.�Trees nbsp;nbsp;. page 390

Population.�Indian Tribes.�First Dutch Settlement�Country ceded to Great Britain, 1814.�Exports............page 392

Personal appearance of Aborigines ; Character, Habits, Dwellings, Food, Intellectual

Ideas of the South American Indians regarding a Deity.�Notions of those professing the Roman Catholic faith...........page 394

Efforts of Moravian Missionaries, commenced 1739.� Difficulties of the Work in British and Dutch Guiana.�Labours of the Church Missionary Society in British Guiana,nbsp;and of the London Missionary Society.�Statement of the Rev. Mr. Bermau of thenbsp;Church Missionary Society.�Tabular View of Missionary Stations .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 395

Division of the Subject.�General appearance of Lower Canada; Rivers, amp;c ; Quebec and Montreal.�Of Upper Canada ; Toronto, Kingston.�Soil.�Climate.�Plants andnbsp;Animals of the whole of British North America.�General appearance of the Unitednbsp;States� Indian Territory.�Vegetable Productions.....page 400

Early Settlement and Government of Canada ; of Nova Scotia.�Population.�Resources of British America.�Brief History of the North West and Hudson�s Bay Fur Companies.�Native Indians of these Territories favourable to British Trade.�The Unitednbsp;States, and its Indian territorial Possessions.�Population of Native Indian Tribes.�nbsp;Annual Presents from the British Government .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;...nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 405

Description of the Indians; Habits and Dress, Dwellings, Character, their Councils, Language.�Savage Warfare.........page 412

Ideas of the Indians regarding the Deity.�Objects of Worship.�Sacrifices and Feasts, page 419

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel; its Labours in British North America.� Missionary Labours of the Church Missionary Society among the Indians.�Formationnbsp;of Red River Settlement, 18�20.�Progress of the Mission.�Early Labours of thenbsp;United Brethren in North America ; Present State of their Mission to the Indians.�nbsp;Wesleyan Missionary Society�s Exertions in British America.�Labours of the American Board among the Native Tribes west of the United States .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 421

Brief Notices of South America.�Its Native Tribes.�Efforts of British and Foreign Bible Society and of the American Board of Missions in their behalf.�Tabular View of Missionary Stations............page 438

General Description of Labrador.�Plants, Fur-animals, Climate, useful Animals.� General Description of Greenland.�Villages, Climate, Plants, Animals . page 443

Danish Government of Settlements in Greenland.�Labrador, under the British Government of Newfoundland ...... .... page 446

General appearance and Character of the Esquimaux.�Dress, Dwellings.�Kaiaks or Canoes.�Moral Character.�Womennbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;449

Notions of Esquimaux and Greenlanders regarding Religion.�Their Angekoks or Priests.............page 452

Early Labours of Hans Egede the Danish Clergyman, and of the United Brethren in Greenland.�First Conversion, 1738.�Progress of the Greenland Mission.�Centenarynbsp;Jubilee held in 1833.�Establishment of the Mission in Labrador by United Brethren,nbsp;in 1752.�Yearly Visits from London to the Esquimaux.�Progress of the Mission.�nbsp;Difficulties.�New Testament translated in Esquimaux Language .nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. page 453

The Continent of Europe is inhabited (with the exception of Turkey generally) by different sects and denominations of Christians, and therefore does not properly come within the proposed object of this work,nbsp;which is, to explain and elucidate the � Protestant Missionary Map of thenbsp;World,� and to furnish the uninformed reader with a concise descriptionnbsp;of those portions of the globe still inhabited by Pagans and Mahometans,nbsp;as those are the countries to which Missionary efforts have been principally directed. But in passing from the British Isles, in our Missionarynbsp;tour of the world (as shown in our � Map of the British Colonies �),nbsp;we must briefly notice those Missions which are being prosecuted onnbsp;the continent of Europe, viz. those of the � Wesleyan Missionary Society,� and those of the � London Society for Promoting Christianitynbsp;among the Jews.�

The parts of Europe of which this chapter treats, are, generally, cultivated and fertile. France is a well-watered country, and produces,nbsp;in the southern districts, the vine, the mulberry, and the orange. Comnbsp;is mostly cultivated in the northern parts of France, while the soil ofnbsp;the central provinces is of a poor and chalky nature. Parts of Prussianbsp;are sandy and marshy, but flax, oats, tobacco, and rye are successfullynbsp;cultivated. Switzerland is a mountainous country ; and Austria con-

tains extensive forests. There are large salt-mines and mines of coal and iron in these central countries of Europe.*

The Political History and the Social Habits of central Europe are so generally known, that we do not deem it needful to enter on this partnbsp;of the subject, as we have done with reference to other countries.

In regard to Religion, all the central parts of Europe (including France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria), were, about three hundrednbsp;vears ago, the scene of the greatest revolution perhaps that has takennbsp;place in the history of the Church,�we mean the Reformation ; whennbsp;vast numbers, headed by Luther and Calvin (and other great Reformers),nbsp;threw off the yoke of Popery, and, protesting against its errors, henceforth received the name of Protestants. � Speaking generally, thenbsp;whole south of Germany may be called Roman Catholic ; the whole

north, Protestant. Of the greater German states, the Roman Catholic religion prevails in Austria and Bavaria ; the Protestant, in Prussia,nbsp;Saxony, Hesse, and Hanover. In Germany, the Roman Catholics stillnbsp;form the majority, being reckoned at eighteen millions, the Protestantsnbsp;only at twelve millions.�* As the Moravians, or Church of thenbsp;United Brethren, had their origin in Bohemia and Moravia, two of thenbsp;western states or provinces of Germany, and as they will be frequentlynbsp;mentioned in this Missionary sketch, we shaU here say a few wordsnbsp;upon their rise and progress in Europe. The Moravians are descendednbsp;from a people, who, like the Vaudois and Waldenses of Piedmontnbsp;and Switzerland, never bowed beneath the Romish yoke, but may benbsp;traced directly up to the primitive apostoUc church, and belonged tonbsp;the Sclavonian branch of the early Greek church ; the gospel having beennbsp;preached in Illyria and Dalmatia (countries immediately south of Austrianbsp;and Bohemia), by the apostles. Rom. xv. 19 ; 2 Tim. iv. 10. Thoughnbsp;some of their princes adhered to the Roman communion, yet the peoplenbsp;resolutely retained the Bible in their hands, and performed their churchnbsp;service according to the ritual of their fathers, and in their own tongue ;nbsp;refusing to submit to the introduction of images into their churches,nbsp;the use of the Latin tongue in their pubhc or private worship, or tonbsp;refusing the cup to the laity in the celebration of the Lord�s Supper ;nbsp;all of which they esteem errors of the Roman Catholic church. Fornbsp;these heresies, as they were deemed, they were persecuted withoutnbsp;mercy, and almost without intermission, many with torture and cruelnbsp;deaths, more with the spoiling of their goods, and multitudes withnbsp;imprisonment and exile ; the words of the apostle Paul, Heb. xi. 36�nbsp;38, being in them literally fulfilled : � And others had trial of cruelnbsp;mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment :nbsp;they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slainnbsp;with the sword : they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins ; being destitute, afflicted, tormented ; (of whom the world wasnbsp;not worthy :) they wandered in deserts and in mountains, and in densnbsp;and caves of the earth,� Among the confessors and martyrs of thenbsp;fourteenth century, who suffered in the persecutions carried on by thenbsp;Emperors of Germany and the Popes, were John Huss and Jerome ofnbsp;Prague, the Bohemian Christians, who were burnt to death for theirnbsp;adherence to the faith. During the war that ensued after the death ofnbsp;Huss, in 1414, the Church of the United Brethren, under its presentnbsp;name, was formed, by those who chose rather to suffer as witnessss fornbsp;the truth, than to defend it by weapons of worldly warfare, A bloody

decree was issued against the Bohemian Christians, at the German diet, in 1468, and their first bishop, Michael, was imprisoned. Their sufferings from persecution at this time were dreadful. Upon theirnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;*

obtaining some respite, they were the first people who employed the then newly-invented art of printing for the publication of the Bible in anbsp;living language ; and three editions of the Bohemian Scriptures werenbsp;issued by them before the Reformation.

But as the Reformation did not penetrate into the recesses of Bohemia and Moravia, they suffered renewed persecutions till about 1660, whennbsp;they were so broken up, hunted down, and scattered abroad, that theynbsp;ceased to be known to exist as a church. About this time, their bishop,nbsp;John Commenius, a great scholar, published a history of the Brethren,nbsp;with a � Dedication to the Church of England.� Sixty years afterwardsnbsp;(in 1722), the Moravian church was raised, as it were, from the dead,nbsp;by a persecution intended to crush its last remnant in Moravia. Somenbsp;families, fiying from thence, found refuge on the estates of an Austriannbsp;nobleman. Count Zinzendorf, who had been carefully brought up by anbsp;pious grandmother in the principles of the Reformed faith ; and who,nbsp;throughout his life, was the firm friend, supporter, and assister of thenbsp;Moravian Christians. Upon his estate, the Brethren were allowed tonbsp;build a town, called Hernhutt, which is situated on the borders ofnbsp;Saxony and Silesia. Here their countrymen joined them, and it is stillnbsp;their principal settlement. The United Brethren first appeared innbsp;England about 1740. The most malignant calumnies were immediatelynbsp;spread against them ; but in the simplicity of their conscious innocence,nbsp;they laid their case before the British Parliament. Their doctrines,nbsp;discipline, character, and history, were scrupulously examined in Committees of both Houses, and two bills, exempting them from takingnbsp;oaths and from bearing arms, were carried, with the unanimous consentnbsp;of the bishops, and they were acknowledged in these bills to be � annbsp;ancient Protestant Episcopal Church.� They have now several congregations in England, Scotland, and Ireland ; but their numbers arenbsp;everywhere small, and their means of supporting the work of enlightening the heathen very slender. If it could be ascertained how muchnbsp;they have done, and with how little means, the world might be held innbsp;wonder and admiration, while they would say, � It is the Lord�s doing,nbsp;and it is marvellous in our eyes.�

Governors, bishops, statesmen, and officers, have alike home testimony to their worth. Of their missionary zeal, Mr. Wilberforce thus speaks,nbsp;in his work entitled � Practical Christianity.� � It is a zeal temperednbsp;with prudence, and softened with meekness, soberly aiming at greatnbsp;ends by the gradual operation of well-adapted means, supported by a

courage wliicli no dangers can intimidate, and a quiet constancy which no hardships can exhaust.�*

Tlie established religion of France is the Roman Catholic, but all sects are tolerated by the state. Of the thirty-two millions of peoplenbsp;in France, about two millions and a half are computed to be of thenbsp;Reformed religion, and are said to have at present 404 pastors. Innbsp;1837, their number was 366, according to the � Ecclesiastical Budget.�nbsp;� The Reformed worship of France was re-organized by Napoleonnbsp;Bonaparte, in 1804. Those who chose to profess Protestantism, whether Socinians or Neologians, or of whatever sect they might be, werenbsp;permitted to have � pasteurs,� paid by the state, at a salaiy of fromnbsp;�50 to �80 a-year. But as the Consistorial Churches (so called tonbsp;distinguish them from the Lutheran branch of the Reformed Church)nbsp;were not compelled, when re-organized, to use their Confession of Faith,nbsp;or to subscribe to it, the greater number of the salaried pastors werenbsp;found lately, upon inquiry, to be infected with infidelity ; and, at thisnbsp;time, the state-paid Protestantism of France is for the most part Socini-anism ; though, within the last ten years, the Trinitarians have receivednbsp;an acquisition of more than 100 pasteurs.�)'

In 1559, at the first Generid Assembly of the French Church, when she drew up her unexceptionable Confession of Faith, she numberednbsp;2150 churches in her connection ; but by constant persecutions and thenbsp;increase of Popery in France, she rapidly declined; and, in 1598, thenbsp;Reformed Church of France only numbered 760 communities. Thisnbsp;was the year of the passing the � Edict of Nantes,� by Henry IV., bynbsp;which the Protestants were, in some degree, allowed the free exercisenbsp;of their religion ; but they were stUl dreadfully persecuted, till, in thenbsp;year 1685, this edict was revoked by Louis XIV. At this time therenbsp;were 2000 Protestant ministers in the French Church.)

The Protestant Church in France is divided into two branches ; viz. those who are of the French Reformed Church (and sprungnbsp;originally from the Geneva Reformers) ; and those who adhere to thenbsp;Confession of Augsburg (in Germany), which Confession was drawn upnbsp;by the enlightened and excellent Melancthon, approved of by Luther,

* See � Sketch of the United Brethren�s Missions in 1836.� Printed at the office o the London Association, 38, Charles street. Parliament-street. Also Bost�s � Flistory ofnbsp;the Bohemian and Moravian Brethren.� One vol., abridged and translated from thenbsp;French. Published by the Religious Tract Society, 1838.

� In 1660 the last meeting of the assembly was held : by this interdiction the Presbyterian Church government in France was broken up, and this was a severe blow to the French Protestant Church. See Lorimer�s � Sketch of the French Protestant Church.�nbsp;1810.

and publicly presented and read before the Emperor Charles V. at the Diet of Augsburg, in 1530, by the Elector of Saxony and a number ofnbsp;other German princes who had thrown off the errors and yoke ofnbsp;Popery.*

Besides these two Protestant Churches (both recognized by the French government as national), there are several small sects of Frenchnbsp;Protestant dissenters, as Wesleyans, Independents, Free Church, amp;c.nbsp;Neither of the two principal bodies of Protestant Christians in Francenbsp;adopt the episcopal form of church government. The Calvinisticnbsp;branch was, at its first organization, governed by consistories (ornbsp;synods), composed of lay and clerical members. Buonaparte established, in 1804, that they should consist of twelve of the mostnbsp;highly taxed members of the congregation. They have the management and controul of all ecclesiastical affairs, and might, by law,nbsp;interfere in spiritual matters also, but seldom do. They are morenbsp;frequently a hindrance, than a help or blessing, to both ministers andnbsp;people. The Articles of the Reformed Church in France admit � thatnbsp;there should be pastors, elders, and deacons.�t The deacons seem tonbsp;hold a good deal the same kind of office as the � seven� did in thenbsp;time of the apostles ; and they have now lately established a society ofnbsp;deaconesses, under strict regulations. The ministers or pastors of thenbsp;French church are ordained by seven ministers chosen by themselvesnbsp;from any part of France, who have a right to examine them in moralsnbsp;and doctrine ; but as regards their proficiency in learning, they mustnbsp;bring certificates from the place where they have been educated, beforenbsp;they can present themselves for the ministry. Their ordinations arenbsp;very solemn and edifying. There is a college at Montauban, establishednbsp;by Buonaparte expressly for the education of Protestant ministers, andnbsp;another at Strasburg.

The Protestants have a right by law to demand a minister whenever there are 500 people of their own community to he found within a givennbsp;district. The proportion the rich Protestants in France bear to the poornbsp;are as 10 to 4 ; i. e. those who are in competent circumstances, andnbsp;those who work for their daily bread. Their places of worship have, innbsp;some cases, formerly been Roman Catholic churches ; but, in general,nbsp;they more resemble our dissenting chapels, and are fitted up with open

* The first-named branch (the Reformed Church) drew up their Confession of Faith in forty articles, in the year 1559. They Iiave also a Catechism for youth, hut they seldomnbsp;make use of either, not being compelled to do so. In doctrine and discipline they verynbsp;much resemble the Kirk of Scotland. See Rev. J. Gr. Lorimer�s � Sketch of the Protestant Church in France.�

benches or rows of chairs. They have a pulpit, but not always a reading-desk. There is a form of liturgy in the French Reformednbsp;Church, but it is very meagre, comprising only a Confession of Faith,nbsp;one or two short prayers, and the commandments. They have a shortnbsp;pubhshed form, for baptisms, marriages, and burials ; but much of theirnbsp;prayers and exhortations are extempore. They do not confirm by thenbsp;laying on of hands, as in the English Church ; but before the youngnbsp;partake of their first communion, they are not only instructed andnbsp;examined, but solemnly exhorted by their minister to ratify theirnbsp;baptismal vow. The French clergy, both Calvinists and Lutherans,nbsp;dress in black ; and in their own churches wear a gown, though, elsewhere, it is not considered indecorous to preach without. Being professedly acknowledged and protected by the Government, they nevernbsp;need conceal their sentiments or office, as they cannot now be openlynbsp;persecuted as Protestants,�though, when the municipal authorities are.nbsp;bigotted Roman Catholics, all Protestants, both ministers and pa^jile,nbsp;are often subject to real and vexatious persecutions, owing to unjustnbsp;and misused power, backed by a false interpretation of � La Charte.�*

According to a statement, quoted in the Missionary Register, from the � Archives of Christianity,� in 1834, there were in France 31 Consistorial Churches of the other branch of the French Protestant Church,nbsp;who adhere to the Confession of Augsburg, who were supplied by 223nbsp;pastors.

Before we draw this section to a close, we must say a few words upon that very interesting, but sadly neglected, portion of the inhabitants ofnbsp;Europe, the Jews.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;gt;

The Jews on the continent may be divided into two great branches� the mercantile Jews, and the literary Jews.f Of the first-named class,nbsp;many are very rich, while others are only poor vendors and hawkers ofnbsp;goods. Many of the foreign Jews are bankers, and many more arenbsp;wealthy merchants. Then, of the literary Jews, many of them, on thenbsp;continent, spend much time and pains in becoming acquainted withnbsp;the Old Testament Scriptures, (which they have always possessednbsp;in the ancient Hebrew tongue), and in studying the Talmud, or writingsnbsp;of the Jewish rabbis. Tlie word Talmud signifies learning, doctrine, or

* The French Protestant Church in London has no connection whatever with the Protestant Church in France, being dependant on tlie Bishop of London, and theirnbsp;ministers� appointment resting with the Crown. This Church was originally founded bynbsp;our Edward the Sixth, but revived in the reign of Charles the Second, for the benefit ofnbsp;the French refugees who fled to England owing to the bitter persecutions going onnbsp;against Protestants in France.

wisdom : and the hook that hears this name consists of two parts, the � Mishna,� or � Second Law,� and the � Gemara,� or � Commentary.�nbsp;The Talmudical writings have been composed at different times, bynbsp;distinguished scholars of the Jewish nation, in the Hebrew language.nbsp;Not contented with the simple text of the divinely inspired writings ofnbsp;the Old Testament, these Jewish rabbis, or learned men, have inventednbsp;a vast number of human traditions and observances, which they termnbsp;the Oral Law, and say is as necessary to be read, understood, andnbsp;believed, as the revealed will or law of God, written by Moses and thenbsp;prophets. The Talmud has been compiled since the crucifixion of ournbsp;blessed Ijord, and the subsequent dispersion of the Jewish people ; thenbsp;Jewish rabbis pretend and teach that this oral law (or Talmud) � wasnbsp;given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai, at the same time that the tennbsp;commandments were written ; that Moses handed it down by word ofnbsp;mouth to Joshua, Joshua to the elders, the elders to all the prophets innbsp;succession, and the prophets to eminent and leading men of theirnbsp;nation ; the last of whom (they say) was Simon the Just, who was thenbsp;high-priest : and after him followed a regular succession of wise men,nbsp;which ended with Rabbi Judah the Saint, a man of most eminent talentnbsp;and virtue.�

The whole of this account of the giving and handing down the oral law (including a great deal that is absurd and fictitious), is a merenbsp;invention of the rabbis, to account for its existence and to support itsnbsp;authority. And it shows us the darkness and ignorance in which thenbsp;unconverted Jews are sunk, when we learn that they instruct their verynbsp;children to believe, not only that there are two divine laws, when thenbsp;Bible makes mention of only one, but, that the Talmud, or oral law, isnbsp;of far greater importance and weight than the divinely written law, viz.nbsp;the Old Testament scriptures ; and this is their false reasoning :�nbsp;� God foresaw that the Gentiles would copy out, and abuse to purposesnbsp;of impiety and heresy, the twenty-four books of holy writ ; and so henbsp;delivered to Moses a spoken law, which was to be handed down by wordnbsp;of mouth from one generation to another ; nor would he allow it to benbsp;handed down in writing, till the sects of the Mahometans and Christiansnbsp;had arisen, lest the Gentiles (the heathen) should pervert it to the samenbsp;evil purposes as they did the written law.�*

A converted Jew of Poland calls the Talmud � that horrible chain of darkness, by which Satan holds fettered millions of the sons ofnbsp;Abraham,�

* See � Jewish Advocate for the Young,� published by the London Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews.

The Jews have brought themselves into bondage to many unnecessary observances, to which they attach great merit. Three of these precepts,nbsp;viz. phylacteries, fringes at the corner of garments, and the sign onnbsp;the door-posts, are styled by modem Jews, � the fundamental principlesnbsp;of Judaism.� They obey the precept, � And it shall be for a sign untonbsp;thee upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes,� bynbsp;sewing up slips of parchment into a small leathern box, upon whichnbsp;is written this and three other passages of scripture, and wearingnbsp;these boxes, one upon their foreheads and the other upon their leftnbsp;arms, while they are saying their prayers, as shown in the print at thenbsp;head of this section. The thong of leather, which is attached at onenbsp;end to the box containing the phylacteries, is bound round the armnbsp;seven times, and also round the hand and middle finger in a particularnbsp;manner, to all which they attach a meaning, and use much ceremony,nbsp;and repeat many prayers, while putting them on. One of the Jewishnbsp;rabbis asserts, that � Whoever has phylacteries on his head, M�zuzahnbsp;on his door, and fringes on his garments, is assured that he will notnbsp;sin ; for it is written, � And a threefold cord is not easily broken.�nbsp;(Eccl. iv. 12.) Another rabbi goes even farther, and says, � Whoevernbsp;wears phylacteries, his sins are forgiven him.�*

Whatever be the mling principle that prompted the invention of all this error and absurdity, the Jews are a living proof of the truth ofnbsp;holy scripture, which states, that � blindness in part is happened untonbsp;Israel, till the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.� From other parts ofnbsp;scripture we learn, that they shall be again gathered into Christ�s fold ;nbsp;that they shall again inhabit their own land, in peace and plenty ; andnbsp;shall again be the favoured sons and daughters of the Lord Jehovah.nbsp;The Jews have always been not only a scattered people, but a severelynbsp;persecuted people. They are, even now, by Protestants more oftennbsp;despised and derided, than befriended and pitied ; and especially havenbsp;they met with persecution, contempt- and ill-will from the nations professing the Roman Catholic rehgion, and from the Russian or Greeknbsp;Church Christians.

The Jews are very numerous in Poland ; aU the trade of that country being in their hands. There are about two millions in the Russiannbsp;dominions, of whom 400,000 are in Poland.

� The Jews, both on the continent and in England, dislike a trade or handicraft, and, if they learn one, will leave it off as soon as they can.nbsp;In short, their own tastes and habits, as well as the forbidding andnbsp;unkind conduct of most Christians towards them, incline them to live

as a scattered, but a separate, nation, quite distinct from the rest of the people in whose land they are sojourning ; thus literally fulfilling thenbsp;whole of scripture, particularly many passages in the prophets and innbsp;Deuteronomy. The number of Jews in Eiigland is supposed to benbsp;about 30,000, of whom, it is said, 20,000 are to be found in Londonnbsp;and other large towns in the kingdom. There is a continual successionnbsp;of Jews from the continent, coming and returning for the purposes ofnbsp;trade. The wealthy Jews are not negligent of their poorer brethren,nbsp;as long as they adhere to Judaism ; but as soon as any Jew embracesnbsp;Christianity, he is cast olF by all his former relations and friends, whonbsp;will no longer give him any assistance when in distress, and very oftennbsp;will not even notice or speak to him again.

The Jews have almost always, in a manner, two languages�the Hebrew, which they aU read, and the language of the country in whichnbsp;they dwell, which they speak. They take great care to instruct theirnbsp;children in the Hebrew tongue, for the sole purpose of being able tonbsp;read the Old Testament, and the Talmudical writings. The Jews havenbsp;schools and universities of their own on the continent ; and as Biblicalnbsp;critics they have ever been distinguished, and thus kept alive amongnbsp;themselves a love for Biblical literature.*

Their religious services are full of endless and unmeaning ceremonies, and ritual observances. They have many fasts, the principal is the Day of Atonement, which they observe with very great strictness.nbsp;They have no sacrifices, but they eat their paschal supper, and keep thenbsp;passover feast at the same time that we observe Easter. Their wholenbsp;religion may be said to be one of outward forms and ceremonies, uponnbsp;which they lean for salvation, but � the doing of which can never makenbsp;the comers thereunto perfect.� Wherefore we read of the deathbed ofnbsp;Jews being the most awfully wretched sights possible. For they havenbsp;no sure and certain hope to lay hold upon, when the hour of theirnbsp;dissolution approaches, seeing they refuse to believe in the only way ofnbsp;salvation which God has provided. Alas ! they know not the blessednbsp;gospel ! They know not (too frequently) any form of Christianity, butnbsp;the bowing down to images of the Virgin Mary or the crucifix, andnbsp;other mummeries of Popery, or the careless lives of unbelieving Christians, who live as without God in the world ; and so they are hardenednbsp;in their prejudices against their crucified and risen Lord, and vainlynbsp;persist in denying Him who has bought them with his precious blood.nbsp;In all their wide and long-continued dispersion, the children of Israelnbsp;stiU remember Zion. Jerusalem is yet, as in the days of old, the centre

of attraction to the Jews of all nations, and numbers are now ardently longing to return to the land of their forefathers.

Mr. Ewald, in his lately published Journal of Missionary labours in Jerusalem, during 1842-3-4, informs us that the small congregation ofnbsp;believing Jews now assembled at Jerusalem (where a Protestant church,nbsp;begun some time ago, is now about to be finished) amounts to 25 souls.nbsp;The Church of England services are performed there by the Anglicannbsp;bishop and his chaplains, in the Hebrew, German, and Englishnbsp;languages.

� Fur Clnist is the end of ilie law for rigliteousness to every one that believeth. Fur the Scripture saith, Wlwsoever hdieveth on hitn shall not be ashamed. For there is nonbsp;difference between the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich unto allnbsp;that call upon him.'quot; Rom. x. 4, 11, 12.

There are many peculiar difficulties in the way of the progress of divine truth in Irelajid, which is one of the countries to which thenbsp;Wesleyan Missionary Society has sent its missionaries and teachers fornbsp;upwards of forty years. The instruction of the people is greatly hindered by the Roman Catholic priests, who vigilantly oppose the spreadnbsp;of the gospel light, and thus prevent our getting access to the greaternbsp;part of the Irish peasantry ; while the frequency of political agitation,nbsp;and the heat of party strife, prevent calm and serious attention fromnbsp;those to whom access may have been gained. Yet notwithstandingnbsp;these obstacles to their labours, the missionaries have been made thenbsp;honoured instruments of much good to the poor priest-ridden Irish,nbsp;and many have been converted from the errors of Popery through theirnbsp;means.

In France they have also labouied with some success, both in the north and in the south, on the borders of Switzerland, at the foot ofnbsp;the High Alps, where that truly apostolic minister, Felix Neff, labourednbsp;with such persevering zeal. The winters are very severe in thesenbsp;Alpine regions, and the avalanches fall in immense masses from thenbsp;frozen mountains above the villages. Within this circuit (the southnbsp;of France) the Wesleyans had, in 1841, as many as four thousandnbsp;regular hearers.*

The prosecution of labours among the French, in Paris, is attended with much difficulty, on account of the practical disregard of the

Sabbath which there SO universally prevails. In 1842, the Wesleyans greatly felt the want of a place where they could hold pubhc worshipnbsp;undisturbed ; as a theatre had been opened immediately under thenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;,

windows of the rooms in which their congregation assembled, the noise of which hindered their Sabbath-evening worship. But in the goodnbsp;providence of God, it was so ordered that the theatre did not succeed,nbsp;and the building was closed. The Wesleyans obtained permission fromnbsp;Government, and converted it into a very neat commodious chapel,nbsp;60 feet long by 30 feet wide. The Committee of the Wesleyan Missionary Society remark, � When we state that this is the third time, innbsp;France, that a theatre has been converted into a house of worship,nbsp;our Christian friends may, with us, thank God, and take courage.�nbsp;In Paris, the Wesleyans have day and Sunday schools at work, whichnbsp;it is believed have been the instruments of much good to many.*

In the year 1826, there were in France 120 members belonging to the Wesleyan Societies� churches; in 1844, we see (by a view of ournbsp;tabular list of stations) they bad nearly twelve hundred under theirnbsp;care and ministry.f

In the kingdom of Wirtemberg (a Protestant German state), the preachers of the Wesleyan Missionary Society have access to aboutnbsp;forty-two towns and villages, and their hearers amounted, in 1842,nbsp;to 657.

Ever since the year 1808, the Wesleyans have had a missionary nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;��

labouring at Gibraltar, among both the English and Spanish population. That Gibraltar belongs to Great Britain, should be considered by us asnbsp;a marked interference of a wise and gracious Providence. This stronglynbsp;fortified town holds a remarkable position between the two great continents of Europe and Africa, and entirely commands the entrance ofnbsp;the Mediterranean Sea. The people of Spain are the most bigottednbsp;Roman Catholics, and their government at home is very intolerantnbsp;(or rather the priests have great power) ; but in the Spanish coloniesnbsp;in America, which have thrown oif the yoke and declared themselvesnbsp;free states, and are now quite independent of the mother-country,nbsp;missionaries or Bible-society agents are not molested or hindered in

It may be well to observe here, that, under the head of � Communicants,� in the nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;,

column set apart for that information in all the � tabular views� where the Wesleyan Missionary Society is concerned, the numbers generally imply what this body of Christians term, in their Church government, � Full and accredited members ;� whereas, innbsp;regard to other societies, the term has reference simply to those members of the differentnbsp;churches who are in the habit of constantly receiving the Lord�s Supper ; but we did notnbsp;think it necessary to appropriate a separate column to each of these distinctions ornbsp;classes.

their work to nearly so great a degree. The Report of the Wesleyan Society for 1843 states, that � the prospects of the mission at Gibraltarnbsp;are hopeful. In the Spanish department, the schools occupy a prominent position. The pupils are many of them children of Romanists,nbsp;who regularly read the Bible at school. A weekly meeting, for explaining the scriptures and prayer, has been commenced for the Spanishnbsp;adult population, and promises to be productive of good.�

At Malta, which also belongs to England, the operations of the Wesleyan Missionary Society (commenced in 1826) do not extend tonbsp;the native Maltese, who are all Roman Catholics, but are chiefly confinednbsp;to the English in the island.

It is to endeavour to propagate through France the religious principles of the Reformation, in opposition to Socinianism, infidelity, and Popery, that the two societies termed � Soci�t�s Evang�liques� ofnbsp;Geneva and Paris were formed (in 1830 and 1833), the former headednbsp;by Messrs. Merle d�Aubign�, Gaussen, Galliard, and other excellentnbsp;men. The Paris �Soci�t� Evang�lique� employs 17 pasteurs ornbsp;ordained ministers, 7 scripture-readers, or �vang�listes, 25 schoolmasters, and 11 Bible and tract distributors or colporteurs,�in all,nbsp;about sixty agents. The Geneva Society, in addition to these samenbsp;objects, supports a school of theology, where 33 students (in 1842)nbsp;were receiving a sound religious education, to fit them to be futurenbsp;ministers of the gospel. It is to help forward the cause of Protestantism in France through the medium of these two � Soci�t�s Evang�liques,� that the Enghsh �Foreign Aid Society� was formed, innbsp;1840, whose funds amounted, in 1844, to �2005 :4: 10.

Respecting the labours of the London Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews, we must now make a few passing observations ; though the nature of thia work does not allow of our entering at allnbsp;fully into the details or working of the Society. It was formed innbsp;1808, and at first embraced both Dissenters and Churchmen; but didnbsp;not become a thoroughly Church of England society till the year 1817,nbsp;when its rules were re-modeUed, and the pecuniary difficulties intonbsp;which the society had been plunged were removed by the generousnbsp;interference and Christian liberality of a zealous individual, Mr. Lewisnbsp;Way. This gentleman undertook a journey into Russia and Poland onnbsp;behalf of the society ; whose first missionary, the Rev. B. N. Solomon, anbsp;converted Polish Jew, commenced his arduous labours atnong the Jewsnbsp;of his own country, in February, 1818, under the sanction of the latenbsp;Emperor Alexander. The society had at this time translated the Newnbsp;Testament into the Hebrew tongue, which was well and eagerly receivednbsp;by the Polish Jews.

In 1817, the King of the Netherlands issued an edict, requiring the education of all Jewish children ; and Mr. Solomon, the society�s firstnbsp;missionary, thus speaks of the schools established in Poland, previousnbsp;to this time, by the Emperor of Austria : � The importance of providingnbsp;a proper education for the Jewish youth in Poland did not escape thenbsp;penetration of the great Joseph II, Emperor of Austria ; and numbersnbsp;have felt the happy and salutary influence of his schools, so wiselynbsp;appointed and beautifully arranged, exclusively for the education ofnbsp;Israelite children. Many it has led to the habit of reading and reflection, and rendered capable of examining the claims of the Christiannbsp;religion,�

Mr. Solomon recommended the society commencing editions of the New Testament in the Jewish-German, or German-Hebrew, and also innbsp;the Polish dialect, for the use of those among the lower orders of Jews,nbsp;who had not had an opportunity of studying the Hebrew language.nbsp;In 1820, the society sent a Swiss Protestant minister to travel amongnbsp;the Jews on the shores of the Mediterranean ; the Rev. A. S. Thelwallnbsp;to Amsterdam (where were 28,000 resident Jews) ; and a convertednbsp;Jew as a missionary to his brethren in Poland. In 1821, the Rev.nbsp;B. N. Solomon, missionary to the Polish Jews, having completed thenbsp;translation of the New Testament into the Polish dialect (usuallynbsp;denominated Judeo-PolisK}, which work he effected in the house of thenbsp;venerable Rev. Thomas Scott, at Aston Sandford, returned to hisnbsp;labours in Poland, accompanied by Mr. Alexander McCaul, then anbsp;graduate of Dublin university, who had been, for a few months, in thenbsp;seminary estabhshed in London by the society, for the purpose of educating missionaries for the Jews.

In 1822, Mr. Joseph Wolff, a converted Jew, left the London seminary for Malta and the East, in the society�s service. Many of the chief rabbis at Jerusalem willingly received the Hebrew New Testamentnbsp;at his hands, and entered into discussions with him on points relating tonbsp;Christianity. In 1823, the society sent out three more missionaries,�nbsp;making now twelve in all. The Jewi^ scholars, at the Bethnal-greennbsp;schools (which commenced, in 1817, with 6 pupils), now amounted tonbsp;3.3 boys and 49 girls.

The number of Jews in Gibraltar is stated to be about 2000 ; and numbers are constantly passing and returning through the town fromnbsp;Europe to Africa ; the society were therefore desirous of sending anbsp;missionary to this important station. Mr. McCaul w�as ordained innbsp;England in the year 1823, and returned to labour on the continent.

In the Report of 1824, mention is made of various auxiliary societies aiding in the conversion of the Jews on the continent, and of the German

missionaries sent out by the Edinburgh Jewish Society. Besides the scriptures, the London Society has continued to print and circulate, fornbsp;many years, great numbers of Tracts and Psalters in Hebrew, German,nbsp;English, and Polish, and has translated the Liturgy into Hebrew.

In 1825, the society pubhshed a new and improved edition of the whole Hebrew scriptures, both Old and New Testament ; and, in 1827,nbsp;a Judeo-Polish translation of the Old Testament was commenced by thenbsp;Rev. A. McCaul ; also a 12mo. edition of the whole Hebrew scriptures,nbsp;revised by Dr. Neumann, a learned Jewish convert, from Breslau.nbsp;Several converted Jews were now employed by the society. Hithertonbsp;the labours of the society�s missionaries among the Jews seem to havenbsp;consisted principally in travelling about from one town to another,nbsp;throughout Holland, France, Austria, Prussia, and Poland, but, in

Some of the difficulties the missionaries met with, in attempting to circulate the scriptures among the Jews, are mentioned in the 19thnbsp;Report of the London Society. 1. The poverty of the lower classes,nbsp;that they could not purchase whole copies of the Bibles published, evennbsp;at very low prices. 2. Their old prepossession for Commentaries,nbsp;so that they refused to buy Bibles printed without note or comment.nbsp;3. Their systematic contempt for the word of God. and their adherencenbsp;to the remark found in their Talmud, � The Bible is like water, thenbsp;Mishna like wine, and the Gemara like spiced wine.'�

But we must hasten to a conclusion of our remarks respecting this most zealous and persevering (but ill-supported and little-known) society.nbsp;Its funds have gradually increased since its renovation in 1817, so thatnbsp;they are now more than double what they were twenty years ago, butnbsp;stiU they do not exceed �25,000 ; a very small sum, when we consider the urgent claims and great necessities of the Jewish nation.

Our readers must not judge from the portion of the annexed tabular view relating to the Jews� Society, that these are all the towns on thenbsp;continent of Europe, where Protestant missionaries have at any timenbsp;been stationed ; for there is this peculiarity regarding the Londonnbsp;Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews, that their mission-

]G nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;CHAP. I.--EUnOPE.

aries often change their residence : as the people among whom they teach are wanderers, so are they obliged to wander in search of the lost sheepnbsp;of the house of Israel. The Reports of past years, in addition to thenbsp;places mentioned as stations in 1844, contains the names of the followingnbsp;towns, where their agents have at different periods resided, Amsterdam, Cologne, Halberstadt, Keila, Magdeburg, Marseilles, Offenbach,nbsp;Metz, Bromberg, Nieuwied, amp;c.

The general appearance of this division of the vast continent of Africa is that of a rich, flat country, bounded on the north by the sandy desertnbsp;of Sahara. There are ranges of mountains north and east of Guinea,nbsp;which have never yet been explored. The western coasts of Africa arenbsp;watered by several noble rivers, the principal of which are the Niger,nbsp;the Senegal, and the Gambia ; also by several small rivers and tributarynbsp;streams, which fall into the Gulf of Guinea. This country comprisesnbsp;the territory called Senegambia, the British colony of Sierra Leone,nbsp;the capital of which is Freetown ; the American colony of Liberia ; andnbsp;the country generally known by the name of Guinea, which comprehends the kingdoms of Ashantee, Dahomey, amp;c.

The extent of the territory belonging to the settlement of Sierra Leone is about 300 square miles. The British possess also four smallnbsp;settlements on the coast of Guinea, viz. Cape Coast Castle, Succondee,nbsp;Dix Cove, and Anamahoe, as well as the fort of British Accra. Thenbsp;Danes have a fort at Accra, and the French at Whydah, The use ofnbsp;the forts to the British is to protect their trade in gold, ivory, andnbsp;palm-oil ; but they were originally built to facilitate the slave-trade.nbsp;Coomassie (or Kumasi) is, the principal town in the kingdom ofnbsp;Ashantee. The town of Bonny is situated at the entrance of the rivernbsp;Niger, and has been a great mart for the slave-trade with severalnbsp;European nations. The islands of Ascension and St. Helena belong tonbsp;Great Britain ; the Madeiras and Cape de Verd Islands to the Portuguese. Below the river Niger are the states of Congo, Loango, andnbsp;Benguela, on the coasts of which the Portuguese have formed settlements for the purpose of carrying on the slave-trade.

and peculiarly unhealthy to Europeans. Among its chief vegetable productions are, the oil and date palms, the baobab (which is the largestnbsp;tree known), the yam, the succulent plant called the screw-pine, thenbsp;beautiful silk-cotton tree, the plant that hears the earth-nut, and thenbsp;splendid locust-tree, and various kinds of fruit-trees. The sugar-cane,nbsp;the orange, the lime, rice, maize, and tobacco, are partially cultivated.*nbsp;The animals that most abound in the western parts of Africa, are lions,nbsp;tigers, leopards, panthers, elephants, crocodiles, and several kinds ofnbsp;snakes.

This country is peopled by various tribes of the negro race, among which may be named the Foulahs, the Bulloms, the Mandingoes, andnbsp;the Ashantees. They are governed by despotic chiefs, who have beennbsp;generally ready, with unprincipled foreigners, to carry on that iniquitousnbsp;traffic, the slave-trade, bartering thereby their own subjects for moneynbsp;and various articles of manufacture. Thousands of the poor Africansnbsp;are, for this purpose, annually torn from their families and homes, tonbsp;supply the West India Islands and other colonies with cultivators ofnbsp;the soil ; and it is this cruel trade in human beings which has been thenbsp;curse of Africa for nearly three hundred years. It is now, however.

* See � Murray�s Encyclopedia of Geography.� t See � Clarkson�s History of the Slave Trade.�

rendered illegal by the British government ; and, since the 1st of August, 1834, all British slaves in the colonies have been free, and arenbsp;no longer considered as the exclusive property of their masters, but arenbsp;placed on the same footing as labourers in other free countries.

The colony of Sierra Leone was founded in 1787 by a chartered company in England, and, in 1809, was taken possession of by Greatnbsp;Britain. Its population has been estimated at about 40,000 souls, thenbsp;greatest part of whom consists of the negroes taken by British cruizersnbsp;from slave-ships, and brought back to Africa, in consequence of thenbsp;laws made by Great Britain, and recognized by other powers, againstnbsp;the slave-trade. The cost to the British government, for maintainingnbsp;our establishment at Sierra Leone, is about �77,000 annually. Thenbsp;exports of this colony consist principally of timber, bees�-wax, gum,nbsp;ivory, palm-oil, and rice. In 1840, the imports into the colony amountednbsp;to �80,000, and its exports to �72,000.

The Americans, in 1820, formed a colony on the coast southward of Sierra Leone, which they named Liberia, and its chief town Monrovia.nbsp;The settlement is about three hundred miles in length ; but, by latenbsp;documents published by them, they seem to be extending their dominion further in a south-easterly direction, towards Cape Palmas.nbsp;Their original design in forming the colony was to afford an asylum tonbsp;liberated slaves, both those taken from the holds of slave-ships, andnbsp;those who had obtained their freedom in America, whom they thusnbsp;sent back to their own land, with the view of their diffusing the blessingsnbsp;of Christianity and civilization among their own benighted countrymen.* In 1835, the population of Liberia amounted to 1500 people.

There is a considerable trade in gold, ivory, amp;c. carried on along the coast of Guinea, chiefly by the English, who commenced trading withnbsp;Guinea early in the reign of James I. The British settlements arenbsp;governed by a committee of merchants ; but the forts are now in thenbsp;hands of the British Government.

The kingdom of Ashantee contains about a million of inhabitants, who are a fierce and warlike race of people. There are a number ofnbsp;large towns in Ashantee ; Coomassie, the capital, is stated to containnbsp;15,000 souls. Their king has been a great promoter of the trade innbsp;slaves, and is continually going to war with the neighbouring tribes.nbsp;He is at present on good terms with the British Government. Thenbsp;form of government of the tribes of Western Africa is generally thenbsp;feudal system which once obtained in our own land.

with a view of conciliating the different African chiefs bordering on that river, and of discovering the best mode of trading with them, andnbsp;bestowing upon them the blessings of civilization. Favourable termsnbsp;were entered into with some of the chiefs, and a farm was commencednbsp;upon the banks of the Niger, about 180 miles distant from its mouth.nbsp;One advantage, among others, gained by this expedition, was that thenbsp;king of Eboe promised that, if other sources of trade were pointed outnbsp;to him, he would consent to give up the slave-traffic. The expeditionnbsp;was unhappily broken up on account of the unhealthiness of the climate,nbsp;laying prostrate in death, as it did, many of its commanders and men.

The negro tribes of Western Africa are in a very degraded and barbarous condition, as the effects of any intercourse with civilized nations do not extend far beyond the sea-coasts. Tlieir dwellingsnbsp;consist entirely of rude huts, made of mud or wood, the art of masonrynbsp;being as yet unknown to them. Their dress is of the most simplenbsp;description, and made of a coarse kind of woollen stuff, which theynbsp;either manufacture themselves, or obtain from the northern states bynbsp;Arab traders. The natives of Western Africa are fond of gay coloursnbsp;and of ornaments of every kind, such as beads, rings, and gold lace.

the human species ; in no part of this extended region has been found a single alphabet, or even a picture or symbol of any description. Theynbsp;are also complete strangers to any of the ornamental arts or refinednbsp;luxuries of more civilized nations : they delight in war ; but in theirnbsp;domestic habits, they are cheerful, gay, hospitable, and kind-hearted,nbsp;and are passionately fond of music and dancing.�*

The absence of enlightened freedom is one of the most striking characteristics of African society. In the nations of Western andnbsp;Central Africa, the few are despots, and the great mass of the peoplenbsp;are slaves. The number of Pagan Negroes held in a state of slaverynbsp;by the � followers of the prophet,� � is far greater than that of the freenbsp;population. The lives and services of the slaves are at the disposal ofnbsp;their masters ; they are employed in cultivating their plantations or innbsp;trading for them, receiving such an allowance for their support as theirnbsp;owners may deem sufficient. Humiliating as is this dependence on thenbsp;will of another, yet the treatment of slaves in Africa is not uniformlynbsp;severe ; and in many instances they rise to power and office. A carefulnbsp;investigation of African society will serve to show that the foreignnbsp;slave-trade is valued by the native princes, not only on account of itsnbsp;pecuniary advantages, but also as an outlet for what they deem a redundant slave-population. In many cases the slave-trade is the immediatenbsp;cause of the internal wars by which Africa is ravaged. Polygamy isnbsp;another of the distinguishing features of society in Western Africa.nbsp;The kings and principal persons have usually a great number of wives.nbsp;The hardest work devolves upon the female sex, who will be foundnbsp;cultivating the plantations and grinding at the mill, though the womennbsp;of the higher classes in Ashantee and other parts, are exempt fromnbsp;such drudgery.

The Ashantees and Fan tees form an exception, as regards what has been already stated of the ignorance of the arts in Western Africa, asnbsp;they are ingenious artists in the gold which their country produces ;nbsp;and iron is also manufactured by these nations to a considerable extent.nbsp;The tanning of leather is also understood by them ; and in weaving, thenbsp;Ashantees have made considerable progress.

The Mandingoes are an extensive tribe dwelling on the banks of the river Gambia. In 1834, the Methodist missionaries wrote of thisnbsp;people, � They are noted for their shrewdness, their propensity tonbsp;traffic, and their intelligence, compared with other Negro tribes. Theynbsp;are men of lofty bearing, with high intellectual foreheads, and a quicknbsp;sagacious eye ; they are tall and well-made, and, in figure, morenbsp;resemble the American Indian.

* See � Murray�s Encyclopedia of Geography.� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;1' Mahometans.,

The knowledge which Europeans have gained of the languages of Africa is very limited and imperfect. The dialects of Western Africa,nbsp;from the Senegal river to the mouth of the Niger, are divided bynbsp;Dr, Pritchard into ten classifications. The Arabs and native Mahometans learn to read in the Arabic language.

The natives of Western Africa are Pagans (and that of a very de-gradingly ignorant character), excepting where the Moors and Arabs have induced them to embrace Mahometanism ; and even then theynbsp;often retain manv of their heathenish customs and notions. Thosenbsp;among them who are still idolaters, worship the most insignificant andnbsp;senseless objects, as shells, beads, teeth of animals, or even a crookc;!nbsp;block, cut into some frightful and fantastic form. In this part of Africanbsp;each man sets up in his hut, or else carries about his person, thenbsp;peculiar object of his worship and veneration, which he calls hisnbsp;Fetiche (or Fetish), and looks upon it as a kind of charm, to preservenbsp;him from evil or cause him to prosper ; and he generally fixes uponnbsp;some acts of self-denial, in honour of his false god, which he will soonernbsp;die than fail to practice. Their priests or diviners they call Fetish-men.

Most of the pagan tribes of Africa sacrifice animals to the evil spirit, and entertain a notion that the spirits of their departed parents ornbsp;relations are maintained by them !

Mr. Beecham, in his work on the people of Ashantee (1841), says :� � Their great rehgious customs are to be classed among the darkestnbsp;features of the national superstition. To obtain a supply of victims fornbsp;their altars is a principal end for which the national deities are supposednbsp;to promote war; and dreadful are the scenes of barbarity exhibitednbsp;after a victorious campaign, when they sacrifice their fellow-creaturesnbsp;as thank-offerings to their gods. Up to a late period, human sacrificesnbsp;were publicly offered at funeral customs in the neighbourhood of thenbsp;coast; but since the Ashantee invasions, the power of the Fanteenbsp;tribes has been so greatly broken, that the British government, tonbsp;which they are obliged to look for protection, has been enabled to putnbsp;down these inhuman practices within the sphere of its own immediatenbsp;influence. Still, in the interior, the funeral customs of the rich andnbsp;great exhibit spectacles of the most horrid barbarity. In some cases,nbsp;many of the wives, and, in others, a great number of slaves, are sacrificed on these occasions, with a view of being sent after the deceased,nbsp;to enable him to maintain his proper rank in another world ! �

Among many of the tribes of Western Africa, the chief occupation of the heathen priests is that of framing, and selling, at an enormous price,nbsp;the rude and fantastic objects of their worship ; and of dressing themselves up in the most absurd and horrible fashion to personate thenbsp;devil, and then to frighten the people into a confession of their theftsnbsp;and other misdemeanours. But we have now only been speaking ofnbsp;the heathen Negro population. In noticing the Mahometan part ofnbsp;the natives of Western Africa, we will quote a few passages from anbsp;small work lately published by J. D. East, entitled � Western Africa.�nbsp;He says, � The immense continent of Africa is divided between Pagansnbsp;and Mahometans. The majority of the inliabitants are indeed stillnbsp;pagans, of the most degraded and debased class ; but the religion ofnbsp;the false prophet has spread, in a greater or less degree, from onenbsp;extremity of the continent to the other. In the principal states ofnbsp;Northern Central Africa it may be regarded as fairly established, to thenbsp;exclusion of every other faith. In other parts of the country, betweennbsp;Central Africa and the coast, numerous Mahometan governments are tonbsp;be found, but existing in the midst of pagan kingdoms, and frequentlynbsp;comprehending a large number of pagans amongst their own subjects.nbsp;In the remaining parts of Africa, paganism is decidedly ascendant,nbsp;tolerating those, who departing from the customs of their fathers, havenbsp;become Moslems. The character of Mahometanism, from the very

onset of its career (twelve hundred years ago), has heen modified by circumstances. Mild in its bearing, as long as it has existed by toleration and been destitute of secular power,�but most arrogant in itsnbsp;assumptions, bitter in its spirit, and relentless in its cruelties, to all whonbsp;dared resist its sway, the moment it has obtained the ascendancy.nbsp;Although it is evident that coercive means have been often employed innbsp;its extension, yet it is a mistake to suppose that the religion ofnbsp;Mahomet has propagated itself only by means of the sword. The rapidnbsp;spread of Mahometanism in Africa is to be traced to the employment ofnbsp;pacific rather than violent measures. The most powerful agency is thatnbsp;of schools, which are conducted by Mahometan priests, and are to themnbsp;a chief means of their support. The Negroes are so anxious for education for their child�en, that pagan parents unhesitatingly commitnbsp;them to a Mahometan teacher. The boys are considered the slaves ofnbsp;their masters, and receive instruction only at night and at daybreak, bynbsp;the light of a large fire, and are employed by them during the day innbsp;planting corn, bringing fire-wood, and other servile offices. Whennbsp;they have completed their education (if education it can be called), theynbsp;are redeemed by the parents either by a slave, or by the price of a slave.nbsp;Mahometan teachers are held in high estimation in Western Africa ; innbsp;some parts every village contains a lodge for their reception, and theynbsp;are everywhere treated with the most profound respect. They itineratenbsp;from one part of the country to another, and are chiefly occupied innbsp;teaching the reading of the Koran in Arabic, (for the Africans have nonbsp;written language of their own,) expounding its doctrines, and initiatingnbsp;the uninformed into the various rites which it enjoins. Where thenbsp;Koran is made the rule of government in matters of civil polity, thenbsp;Mahometan priest is in constant requisition, in order to interpret itsnbsp;meaning. The sale of gree-grees (or charms) also, which either do, ornbsp;only profess, to contain select sentences from the Koran, are to them anbsp;fruitful source of gain ; but notwithstanding the ostentation of learning,nbsp;which these ministers of the false prophet assume, they are in numerousnbsp;instances profoundly ignorant ; unable, in many cases, even to read thenbsp;very book from which they profess to teach.�

Such is the lamentable state of degradation, superstition, and ignorance, which all rehgions but that of Jesus occasions !

� For lie that is called in the Lord^ being a servant^ is the Lord�'s freeman (margin, � made free'} : likewise also he that is called^ being free, is Christ's servant.quot; 1 Cor. vii. 2*2.

� A servant of Christ saluteth you^ always fervently luboureth for you in prayers., that ye may stand perferd and complete in all the will of God.quot; Col. iv. 12.

In the year 1751 the Society for the Projiagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts sent out a missionary to the Gold Coast, who officiatednbsp;for four years as chaplain at Cape Coast Castle, but was much discouraged in his endeavours to introduce a purer faith among the natives,nbsp;owing to the opposition of those engaged in trading on this coast.nbsp;Previous to his return to England in 1756, he had sent home threenbsp;native youths, who were placed by the Society in a school at Islington.nbsp;One of them, named Quaque, was afterwards sent to the University ofnbsp;Oxford, and having completed his education there, he received ordination, and returned to exercise the Christian ministry in his native country. He was chaplain at Cape Coast Castle for more than fifty years,nbsp;hut does not appear to have been instrumental in turning any of hisnbsp;countrymen to Christianity. Some English chaplains, who were sentnbsp;after the decease of Quaque, successively died soon after their arrival atnbsp;Cape Coast, owing to the great unhealthiness of the climate.*

The first scene of the Church Missionary Society�s labours was on the benighted coast of Western Afnca. The missionaries sent out in 1804nbsp;by this Society met with very great opposition from the promoters andnbsp;agents of the slave-trade, and although they were enabled to form threenbsp;stations, yet in 1816 they were forced to be abandoned. At length thenbsp;rising British colony of Sierra Leone presented itself to the Society asnbsp;a fit asylum for their missionaries, where they could be afforded the protection and assistance of the governor of the colony ; and it is to thisnbsp;spot that the efforts of the Church Missionary Society in Westernnbsp;Africa have since been mainly confined. The institution at Fourah Baynbsp;(near Freetown) is an establishment for the education of native youths,nbsp;in order to prepare them for acting hereafter either as missionaries,nbsp;catechists, or schoolmasters. In this estabhshment there are at present twenty-six students. In the numerous schools supported by thenbsp;Church Missionary Society at Sierra Leone, there are not only betweennbsp;five and six thousand children being trained up to read the Word ofnbsp;God, but many women also attend the Sunday Schools with their little

infants on their backs ; and both men and women may be seen, from thirty to fifty years of age, learning the alphabet ! Simeon Wilhelm,nbsp;the Susoo youth, who came to England with Mr. Bickersteth in 1816,nbsp;and died in London the same year, had been brought up in thesenbsp;schools. In his mind and conduct he was a beautiful and bright example of a converted heathen Negro, and he afforded an early proof ofnbsp;the manner in which the labours of the Society have since been oftennbsp;blessed. Many other instances might be named. As a proof of whatnbsp;this Society has been permitted, under Providence, to eflfect among thenbsp;Africans at Sierra Leone, we give the following fact. When Mr. Bickersteth visited the colony in 1815, he admitted to the Lord�s table sixnbsp;native African youths, the first of the Negro race who had ever participatednbsp;in this holy ordinance in their own country. At the present time, therenbsp;are in regular attendance at the sacrament no less than 1560 nativenbsp;communicants ! � What hath God wrought.� An eminently Christiannbsp;Negro, Mr. Samuel Crowther, once a heathen and a slave, has latelynbsp;been admitted to holy orders, and is now gone back to SieiTa Leone, tonbsp;labour among his own countrymen.

The Wesleyan Missionary Society were the next to assist in the work of evangehzing Africa; in 1811 they sent missionaries to Sierranbsp;Leone, and in 1820 also formed stations on the banks of the Rivernbsp;Gambia, among the Mandingoes, and on the island of St. Mary, wherenbsp;was a British settlement, and whose native inhabitants were chieflynbsp;Maliometans. In 1834 the Wesleyan Missionary Society were induced tonbsp;send a missionary to the Coast of Guinea, owing to rather a singular andnbsp;very interesting circumstance, which is related at length in Mr. Beecham�snbsp;book on Ashantee and the Gold Coast, (to which the reader is referred)nbsp;and vthich may be noticed here. A few African youths had learnt tonbsp;read the English Bible in the government school at Cape Coast Castle,nbsp;and had become so much interested in its contents, that they formed anbsp;httle society among themselves for the purpose of reading the sacrednbsp;volume together, and of carefully inquiring into the truth of the religionnbsp;which it taught. They gave their little society the name of � A Meeting, or Society for promoting Christian Knowledge.� This occurred innbsp;1831, and two years after, one of their number, named William denbsp;Graft, found means to send over to England, through the kindness ofnbsp;Captain Potter (master of a merchant vessel from Bristol), to obtain anbsp;number of copies of the New Testament. Captain Potter not onlynbsp;brought them the books, but exerted himself so far as to prevail onnbsp;the Committee of the Wesleyan Society in London to send a missionarynbsp;to this coast, and who, on his arrival, was received with great delightnbsp;by the natives. William de Graft was himself soon after taken into the

service of this Society as teacher, and has since been joined by several other labourers from England, who have now, with good effect, extended their exertions among the warlike and barbarous Ashanteenbsp;nation. At their several stations on the Guinea Coast, between six andnbsp;seven hundred natives have renounced the idolatry of their ancestors,nbsp;and nearly three hundred children are receiving a religious education innbsp;the mission schools.*

A very interesting account of Mr. Freeman�s first visit to Coomassie (or Kumasi), the capital of Ashantee, showing the gracious manner innbsp;which he was received by the King, and also the horrid cruelty andnbsp;bloodshed which their religion enforces upon its followers, was published at length in the � Missionary Notices� of the Wesleyan Missionary Society for January, 1840 ; as also in the General Report ofnbsp;that Society for the same year. To these the reader is respectivelynbsp;referred for full particulars.

It has been before said that the colony of Liberia was formed by the Americans in the year 1820, its objects being�1st. To relieve thenbsp;mother country of its free black population. 2ndly. The establishmentnbsp;of a check to American slave smuggling on the coast : and, 3rdly, Thenbsp;propagation of the Christian religion in Africa, About this time somenbsp;very able remarks were published on the subject at Washington, innbsp;America, to prove that Christianity and its promotion must be thenbsp;basis of every colony established to effect the good of any heathennbsp;people : and it instances Sierra Leone, before missionary exertions werenbsp;commenced at that colony ; the Cape of Good Hope, where agriculturenbsp;and commerce were alone at first made the chief objects of the colony ;nbsp;and St, Domingo, where the blessings of civil and religious liberty werenbsp;alone made to the settlers the object of their colonization�to shownbsp;what the inhabitants would be without the blessings of Christianity.

In 1825 the American Board of Missions entertained the idea of opening a mission to the benighted inhabitants of Western Africa, butnbsp;it was not till 1833 that any suitable person offered himself to commence the undertaking. Mr. John Leighton Wilson was established atnbsp;Fair Hope station, near Cape Palmas, in 1834, and was succeeded innbsp;1836 by Dr. Wilson, a physician, who, after five years� labour here,nbsp;died of fever. The principal fruit of their labour seems to have beennbsp;the education of about fifty natives in their seminary, one-fourth ofnbsp;whom were females. Several of the pupils have become efficient catechists and schoolmasters. The printing press has also sent forth manynbsp;tracts and portions of the Scriptures in the Grebo language. Preaching

does not seem to have been well attended ; and the mission has not been benefited, as they at first anticipated, by their nearness in point of localnbsp;situation to the American colony of Cape Palmas, established in 1832nbsp;by the Maryland Colonization Society. Mr. J. L. Wilson, his wife,nbsp;and two other missionaries, have therefore removed to the mouth of thenbsp;Gaboon Kiver, which is a short distance to the south of the Niger.nbsp;This they find a far healthier spot than the Coast of Guinea, and thenbsp;natives more intelligent and docile. The stations at Cape Palmas arenbsp;given up to the � American Episcopal Society.� Their last reportnbsp;states, � That the difficulties the new station on the Gaboon Rivernbsp;will have to encounter arise chiefly from three causes�the slave-trade,nbsp;intemperance, and Popery. On the south of the Gaboon River is anbsp;large Spanish slave factory, of which Mr. Wilson has given an appallingnbsp;account ; and nearly all the towns on that side are engaged in this horrible traffic. In conducting it, an indispensable agent is intoxicatingnbsp;liquors. When one of the missionaries lately visited George�s Town,nbsp;on the banks of the Gaboon, six slaves had just been sent from thatnbsp;place to the Spanish factory, and six hogsheads of rum received innbsp;return (for a hogshead, in African barter, is about the worth of a slave),nbsp;and this the people were consuming as common property. Popery also,nbsp;in carrying out what seems to be a settled plan (namely, to present itselfnbsp;as a counteracting force at every point where Protestant missions arenbsp;established), is threatening to plant itself on the Gaboon River. Thisnbsp;the priests at Cape Palmas say they design to effect. Three Frenchnbsp;ships of war entered the river in February last, and �attempted to purchase territory. What will be the result of this movement to thenbsp;native Africans, or to the mission, cannot be foreseen ; but we may benbsp;confident that the Great Head of the Church, who is raising a standardnbsp;against the same errors and superstitions in the Sandwich Islands, andnbsp;other places, and giving such efficacy to his own word, will cause thatnbsp;word to triumph over aU opposing influences, both on the coasts ofnbsp;Africa and in every other quarter.� *

The German (or Basle) Missionary Society sent several missionaries to the Gold Coast in 1828, but their undertaking does not appear tonbsp;have met with the desired success. The greater part of them died ofnbsp;fever, and the remaining preached to the Danes in the settlement ofnbsp;Fort Christianburg, who had been without any minister for the lastnbsp;twenty years. Mr. Riis, the last survivor of their number, abandonednbsp;the mission to the Negroes in 1834, and accepted the office of Danishnbsp;chaplain. But we are happy to be able to state, that the Basle (or

German) Missionary Society have again undertaken to establish their mission, under the protection of the Danish government. With a viewnbsp;to its restoration, the Rev. A. Riis proceeded in 1841 to the Westnbsp;Indies, in the hope of finding some Christian families among the Negronbsp;members of the United Brethren�s Missionary settlements in thosenbsp;islands, who might be willing to accompany him to the land of theirnbsp;fathers, and assist him in making known the riches of the gospel amongnbsp;their countrymen in Western Africa. This proposal meeting with anbsp;ready acceptance, six families of converted Negroes, numbering twenty-three souls, chiefly from the Brethren�s congregations in Jamaica, havenbsp;proceeded with Mr. Riis on this errand of mercy. This devoted missionary thus writes from Acropong (near the Aquapim Mountains, onnbsp;the Coast of Guinea), in June, 1843:�� Our little missionary colonynbsp;continues to prosper. We have been invited to establish schools innbsp;several villages. In Acropong itself, a small chapel was opened fornbsp;divine service on the 5th of May last.�*

That part of Southern Africa with which we are acquainted, comprises the British colony of the Cape of Good Hope, and beyond its limits anbsp;considerable extent of country inhabited by various independent tribes ;nbsp;the principal of which are the Hottentots (who are the descendants ofnbsp;the original possessors of Cape Colony), the Korannas, the Boschemansnbsp;(or Bushmen), the Namacquas, Damaras, Griquas, and others, who arenbsp;all of the Hottentot or Negro race ; while to the east of the colony arenbsp;the Caffre races, among whom are the tribes of the Amakos�, thenbsp;Bassoutos, the Fingoes, Mantatecs, amp;c. The extent of Cape Colony isnbsp;about 330 miles in depth by 600 in length. It is divided into elevennbsp;districts or counties, varying in size and extent. .To the east of thenbsp;colony, in the district named Albany, the English emigrants are principally located.* There are three chains of mountains, stretching fromnbsp;east to west, through the whole length of the colony. The space between the sea and the first range is a very beautiful and fertile tract ofnbsp;country, well wooded, and watered by numerous little rivers. This isnbsp;the most cultivated part of the colony, and possesses several spaciousnbsp;bays, affording tolerable shelter for shipping, and contains, moreover,nbsp;the towns of Caledon, George Town, Port Elizabeth, Graham�s Town,nbsp;Bathurst, and Uitenhage, The interval between the lower range ofnbsp;mountains and the Black Mountains (or Zwaarte Bergen) is, in somenbsp;parts, twenty or thirty miles wide ; it consists of arid plains (callednbsp;Karroo, i,e, barren hills), and occasional patches of well-watered andnbsp;fertile grounds. Beyond the Black Mountains is an elevated terracenbsp;(called the Great Karroo) of 300 miles in extent, consisting of vastnbsp;desert plains, where only here and there a few stunted shrubs are to be

found ; and beyond this are the long ranges of mountains called in some parts Nieuveld, or Winterbergen, and in one part Sneewbergen, fromnbsp;their summits being always covered with snow. To the north of thesenbsp;mountains are extensive and barren plains, covered with game and wildnbsp;animals of every variety, including the girafl�e of seventeen feet high,nbsp;and the pigmy or royal antelope of six inches ; the elephant, whichnbsp;weighs 4,000 pounds, and the black-streaked mouse, the fourth part ofnbsp;an ounce ! Antelopes, zebras, and hippopotami are found on the plainsnbsp;and on the banks of the rivers, and the ostrich abounds on the sands.nbsp;On the banks of the Orange River many varieties of trees and evergreen shrubs abound. None of the rivers in South Africa are navigable. Many of the smaller ones are obstructed by a bar of sand atnbsp;their entrance ; and the Orange River is rendered impassable in manynbsp;parts by the falls and rapids which interrupt its even course.

The climate of the Cape is very delightful and salubrious, the heat being moderated by the cool winds from the mountains. The soil is innbsp;general of a dry and sandy nature, though clay and rich mould arenbsp;occasionally to be met with. The beds of the numerous rivers are atnbsp;particular seasons of the year left quite dry ; but when, after the rainynbsp;season, their waters return, vegetation assumes its luxuriant and beautiful character. The flowers and flowering shrubs of the Cape arenbsp;noted for their splendour and variety ; and the profusion with which, innbsp;fertile districts, they are everywhere scattered around, at once surprisesnbsp;and pleases. Pecuhar kinds of succulent plants, fitted to live in anbsp;parched and sandy soil, are very frequent, and heaths of every varietynbsp;abound. In the moist regions, trees of great beauty adorn the scenery,nbsp;but none of a very large size. The oak and the yellow-wood tree arenbsp;the best for timber, and the dark pine and the light-coloured silver-treenbsp;form a beautiful contrast with each other. Of fruits, there are everynbsp;possible variety. The vine is cultivated with success, and the sweetnbsp;wine called Constantia is from vineyards near to Cape Town. But thenbsp;greatest part of the country is pasture land, and supports an immensenbsp;number of sheep and cattle. The thermometer at the Cape variesnbsp;generally from 79 degrees to 47 degrees. Their summer months arenbsp;December, January, and February. There are three principal roads innbsp;the colony : one to the several towns directly east of Cape Town ; another that reaches to Graham�s Town and the Cafire frontier ; and thenbsp;third ascends to the districts to the north of the colony, by Graaff Reinetnbsp;to Griqua Town, amp;c.

The southern promontory of Africa was discovered by the Portuguese in 1547, but it was not until ten years afterwards that Vasco de Gamanbsp;doubled the Cape and proceeded to India. Tlie Dutch and Englishnbsp;East India Company took advantage of the harbour formed by thenbsp;Cape of Good Hope, as a place of rendezvous for their ships, for nearlynbsp;a century before the country was colonized. In 1650 the Dutchnbsp;Government sent a hundred men, and as many women, from the housesnbsp;of industry at Amsterdam to people the colony, and, with very littlenbsp;opposition, they bought extensive tracts of the poor simple Hottentotsnbsp;in return for some tobacco, beads, iron, and brandy. The natives (whonbsp;were then rather numerous) became servants to the Dutch settlers, andnbsp;considerably diminished in numbers after Europeans became masters ofnbsp;the soil. At the revocation of the Edict of Nantes some Frenchnbsp;settlers established themselves at the Cape, and introduced the culturenbsp;of the vine. The Dutch seem to have paid very little attention to thenbsp;internal resources of the colony. Their chief employment seems tonbsp;have been the rearing of cattle. The Cape remained in the hands ofnbsp;the Dutch tUl the year 1795, when, just as its inhabitants were proposing to erect the colony into a free republic, the British Government resolved on taking possession of it for the Prince of Orange, which theynbsp;accordingly effected, and it belonged to the English till the Peace ofnbsp;Amiens, in 1802, when the colony was restored nominally to the Dutch,nbsp;but more properly speaking to the French. On the renewal of the warnbsp;with France, it was resolved by Great Britain to recapture the Cape,nbsp;and a well-appointed force of 5,000 men being sent out in 1806, undernbsp;Sir David Baird and Sir Home Popham, the French and Dutch surrendered without a struggle, and the colony of the Cape of Good Hopenbsp;has ever since remained a part of the British empire. The populationnbsp;amounts to 150,000, of whom a very small proportion are British. Ofnbsp;Christians, both coloured and white, there are supposed to be betweennbsp;60,000 and 70,000. Of the Hottentots there remain rather morenbsp;than 30,000. Of Negro and Malay slaves, introduced by the Dutchnbsp;settlers, there are upwards of 33,000 (these are now emancipated). The army and government officers amount to about 2,500.nbsp;The head-quarters of the military are at Cape Town and Graham�snbsp;Town. Some of the Dutch laws remain in force, but the Dutch language in the courts of law is superseded by the English. Tlie staplenbsp;products of the colony are wool, hides, tallow, corn, wine, whale-oil,nbsp;dried fruits, and aloes ; and of these articles the colony exported to

England and the Mauritius, in 1833, to the value of �81,230. Emigrants from the mother country are every year going out to the Cape, and they are chiefly located in Albany, and on the east side of thenbsp;colony. The number of English emigrants that settled at the Cape innbsp;1842, was 587. The Dutch settlers have lately emigrated to a considerablenbsp;extent to the neighbourhood of Port Natal. They are frequently atnbsp;variance with the native tribes, and the English government has muchnbsp;trouble in settling the disputes, which often prove a serious hindrance tonbsp;missionary labours.

The Dutch colonists, who form by far the greatest number of professing Christians at the Cape, are in their manners hospitable and open. Their chief employments are farming the land, and hunting lionsnbsp;and elephants ; but some few, who have received a superior education,nbsp;have filled offices in the colony with great credit to themselves. Theirnbsp;slaves, who are next in point of numbers, and are either Mozambiquenbsp;negroes or Malays, have many of them become Christians. A greatnbsp;number had obtained their freedom before the laws were passed innbsp;D 2

England prohibiting slavery in the colonies. But their admission to entire freedom took place on the 1st of December, 1838 ; on which daynbsp;their four years� apprenticeship had expired. The tribes of nativenbsp;Africans surrounding the colony, consist generally of mild pastoralnbsp;races, addicted to a wandering life, and divided into independent classes,nbsp;each governed by a separate chief. Many of these tribes possess largenbsp;flocks and herds, while others roam over the salt and sandy plains,nbsp;subsisting entirely by hunting and catching wild animals, at which theynbsp;are very expert. They are all much given to plunder, and are engagednbsp;in frequent and bloody wars with each other. The numerous tribes ofnbsp;Korannas live in rude huts, having very much the appearance of beehives, which are placed in a circle, with the doors towards the centre :nbsp;they are made of poles stuck in the ground, and hoops covered withnbsp;matting, and are, when required, easily removed from the banks of onenbsp;river to another. Their principal dress is a turban, and the karross, ornbsp;.�heep-skin cloak, in the winter-season, and a mantle, or cloak of coarsenbsp;stuff, for the summer. The females construct the houses, and do allnbsp;the hardest work, and are treated as slaves by their husbands ; and thenbsp;daughters are sold or given in marriage by the father, to those whonbsp;will give the greatest number of cattle for them. The Korannas are anbsp;mixed race, between the Hottentots and Cafifes. Most of the Southnbsp;Africans greedily devour flesh, whenever they can obtain it ; and somenbsp;tribes subsist wholly upon curdled milk, berries, and bulbous roots, withnbsp;occasionally what game they can kill ; but they have generally a dislikenbsp;to fish. The Caffres will not touch elephant�s flesh, which is considerednbsp;a delicacy by the Hottentots. The miserable Boshemans are fewer innbsp;number than some of the native tribes, for it has been their constantnbsp;practice to make inroads upon the settlers, and, in turn, they have persecuted and destroyed them in great numbers. They are expert in thenbsp;use of the bow, and their small poisoned arrows are very deadlynbsp;weapons. They besmear their bodies with grease and paint, and theirnbsp;general habits of life are barbarous and disgusting. Their dwellingsnbsp;are often nothing better than holes they have scraped out of the sands.nbsp;The Namaquas and Damaras are pastoral races, and possess cattle innbsp;abundance. The Griquas also possess horses, and are more advancednbsp;towards civilization than the other tribes, unless we except the morenbsp;northern Bechuanas. As we approach the eastern coasts, the countrynbsp;is inhabited by the Caffres (or Kaffres), a fine handsome race of people,nbsp;of a dark tawny-brown colour ; they are not like the negro in countenance, but have an Asiatic cast of face, and are extremely well proportioned. They are divided into numerous tribes, and are more intelligent,nbsp;and, in some respects, less barbarous than the Hottentot races. They

are very kind and hospitable to strangers. Their country is very fertile, and they have vast numbers of flocks and herds. The Zoolah tribe,nbsp;whose incursions have been attended with so much desolation, havenbsp;been characterized by travellers as an industrious and intelligent people ;nbsp;but their habits are less known than those of many of the South Africannbsp;tribes. The Bechuanas, a very numerous class, who inhabit the countrynbsp;to the north of Lattakoo, appear the most advanced in civilization of anynbsp;of the Hottentots ; for they have built large towns of a neat appearance,nbsp;the houses being formed of wood plastered with clay, and ornamentednbsp;withinside with paintings and sculptures. They manufacture iron andnbsp;copper w�ares, and employ beads of difierent colours for money. It isnbsp;imagined they may have gained this from the Portuguese ; who, for anbsp;long period have had a settlement at Delagoa Bay ; the Batlapis, the Ma-queens, the Sichuanas, and the Marutsi, are among their numerous tribes.nbsp;Kurruchane, their chief town, is 160 miles north of Lattakoo. It maynbsp;be here remarked, as rather a singular fact, that none of the tribes ofnbsp;Southern Africans possess anything like a boat or a canoe, and seem tonbsp;have a sort of dread of the sea-coast. When the natives wish tonbsp;cross a river, they place themselves lengthwise upon a log of wood, and,nbsp;using their arms and legs as oars, transport themselves across thenbsp;stream.

The South Africans have no regular system of idolatry, nor any priests or temples for worship. A kind of wild superstition takes thenbsp;place of religion, and they attach great value to spells and charms, andnbsp;all kinds of sorcery. To the Supreme Being some of the Hottentotnbsp;tribes give the name of �Utika� (or � Beautiful �) ; and the Cafirenbsp;word used signifies supreme. Though they have a sort of general beliefnbsp;that the soul is immortal, yet they have no idea of a future state ofnbsp;happiness or misery. Among some of the tribes an entire apathy prevails, and their only sense of happiness seems to be that of eating andnbsp;sleeping (though, from want, they often fast for many days together).nbsp;The Caffres carry their sick into the woods to die alone, as they have anbsp;great horror of coming near a dead body. They bury their chiefs in thenbsp;cattle-fold, as the place of the greatest honour.

The Malay slaves in the colony are, many of them, professedly Mahometans. Within the last twenty years Mahometanism has very much increased at the Cape. In 1839, there were in Cape Town asnbsp;many as five mosques, and the Mahometans had the same number of

schools as the Christians. Five principals, and sixteen inferior priests, with about thirty marabouts or sextons, were constantly on the alert,nbsp;trying to draw the ignorant natives and poorer classes to adopt the creednbsp;of the false prophet. The Dutch settlers belong to the Reformednbsp;Church, and in government and discipline adhere to very much thenbsp;same forms and principles as the Scotch Church. There are many Romannbsp;Catholics among the Europeans at the Cape.

The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel sent a missionary to Wynberg, near Cape Town, in 1836, but no account of his labours appearsnbsp;to have been published. The Church Missionary Society attempted thenbsp;establishment of a mission to the Zoolah nation, in the vicinity of Portnbsp;Natal, early in the year 1838 ; but adverse circumstances taking place,nbsp;when Dingarn, the chief, made war with the Dutch emigrants at Portnbsp;Natal, the missionaries and their wives were obliged to leave the country.

The United Brethren were the first labourers in Southern Africa ; for, in 1736, they were established at Gnadenthal, or the � Vale ofnbsp;Grace� which is 130 miles east of Cape Town. So many impedi-

ments were however thrown in their way by the Dutch colonists, that, in 1744, George Schmidt, their missionary, returned to Europe,nbsp;and the Dutch East India Company refused them permission to return to the colony, until 1792, when, after many entreaties, theynbsp;allowed of the mission being renewed. During their absence, 'a few ofnbsp;their converts retained the knowledge of the truth, and were in thenbsp;habit of meeting together to read a Dutch Bible which the Brethren hadnbsp;left with them. In 1795, the colony became the possession of thenbsp;English, who encouraged and protected the missionaries. They continued, however, to receive great annoyance and hindrances from thenbsp;Dutch boors (or farmers), who objected to any education being given tonbsp;the Hottentots, lest they should become wiser than themselves ; thoughnbsp;occasionally, upon seeing the great good effected by the Moravians,nbsp;they relented, and caused to cease their vexatious opposition. In everynbsp;point of view the Brethren�s settlements were like gardens in the midstnbsp;of the desert. In 1800, the congregation at Gnadenthal amounted tonbsp;six hundred Hottentots, decently clothed and living in neat huts, tonbsp;each of which a garden was added. Many of them were taught usefulnbsp;trades by the missionaries, and they possessed large flocks of sheep andnbsp;cattle. In 1823, their baptized converts amounted to 1,204 natives ;nbsp;and at Groenekloof, their second station, they had a congregation of 364;nbsp;and another also at Enon. After this period many of their convertsnbsp;left them, being seduced into sin, particularly that of drunkenness, tonbsp;which they were often tempted by the colonists. The Governmentnbsp;institution of the hospital at Hemel-en-Arde, is under the care of Moravian missionaries.

Three years after the first formation of the London Missionary Society, in 1795, it sent out four labourers to the Cape, two of whom. Dr. Vanderkemp and Mr. Edmonds, were appointed to that part ofnbsp;the colony bordering on Caffraria ; and the two others to the countrynbsp;north of Cape colony, inhabited by the various tribes of Boschemen (ornbsp;Bushmen). Dr. Vanderkemp was born in 1747. He was the son of anbsp;Dutch minister of the Reformed Church at Rotterdam, and was educatednbsp;at the university of Leyden, and practised for some time afterwards asnbsp;a physician. His mind was not opened to the reception of the truthsnbsp;of the gospel till the year 1791, when the loss of his wife and child in anbsp;storm at sea, formed one of the links by which God drew him to Himself. Dr. Vanderkemp was well received by the natives ; but thenbsp;Dutch settlers soon accused him of being the cause of the disturbancesnbsp;constantly occurring between them and the Caffres ; and they appliednbsp;to the Government for his removal out of the country. The CafFrenbsp;chief, though he at first sided with the Dutch, was, after a lime, so far

won by the indefatigable zeal of Dr. Vanderkemp that he gave him a beautiful spot of ground, on which the station of Bethelsdorp wasnbsp;formed. In 1822, this settlement was in a most flourishing condition ;nbsp;large schools of adults and children were formed, as well as othernbsp;useful institutions, and a printing-press estabhshed.

On the death of Vanderkemp, in 1813, the Rev. John Campbell undertook a journey, in behalf of the London Society, in the interior ;nbsp;an interesting account of which was published. During this journey,nbsp;which was preparatory to the formation of the Lattakoo mission, Mr.nbsp;Campbell wrote a conciliatory letter to the lawless freebooter and savagenbsp;chief, Titus Africaner, who had been long the terror of Namacqua-land. In 1815, this atrocious robber renounced his murderous andnbsp;plundering habits, and received the missionary sent among his people ;nbsp;becoming the meek and humbled disciple of that Saviour whom he nownbsp;had learned to love ; and he henceforth acted as peacemaker betweennbsp;the natives and the colonists. He died in 1822, and his three sons arenbsp;now all zealous Christian missionaries.

Nearly the whole Bible has been translated in the Caffre language : but a part only has been printed by the British and Foreign Biblenbsp;Society. The whole New Testament and the Psalms have also beennbsp;printed in the Hottentot language, or Sichuana.

The Lattakoo mission was commenced in 1817. (This place is 630 miles from Cape Town.) The labours of Mr. Moffat, of the Londonnbsp;Missionary Society, have been very abundant here, and they are relatednbsp;in a most interesting octavo volume, doubtless well known to many ofnbsp;our readers. He translated several portions of the scriptures, and anbsp;volume of hymns into the Sichuana dialect. The poor Hottentotsnbsp;flocked to hear the word of God in their own language. His schoolnbsp;contained in 1830, about fifty boys and forty adults. A large numbernbsp;of natives from various tribes settled round his mission-premises, andnbsp;were taught to cultivate their gardens, which rendered their conditionnbsp;in life better than that of those who depended solely on their flocks fornbsp;subsistence.

There was a striking instance of the savage becoming the well-principled, steady, and religious teacher, in Jan Tzatzoe, the son of a Caffre chief, who accompanied Mr. Read in 1816 to the Kat River settlement, andnbsp;afterwards became a teacher in the service of the Society. The Calfresnbsp;are supposed to extend for not less than 500 miles from the frontiers ofnbsp;the British colonies, along the eastern coast. Great success had attendednbsp;the means used for their improvement and religious instruction up tonbsp;1830, and since that period civilization and religion has advanced evennbsp;more rapidly amongst their tribes, notwithstanding the many difficulties

the missionaries have had to contend with, and the constantly disturbed state of the colony, and the country bordering upon its frontiers ; andnbsp;the entirely untutored and wicked state of the CalFres, added also muchnbsp;hindrance to missionary exertions. But still, it is wonderful to see, bynbsp;the published reports, how much has been done, and how the improvednbsp;state of the poor degraded Hottentots amply repays the missionary allnbsp;his toil and labour.

Mr. Buxton draws a comparison in a missionary speech made by him in 1829, between the present heathen state of the Hottentots of Southernnbsp;Africa, and that of the once heathen natives (our ancestors) from Greatnbsp;Britain. Hs says, � I cannot but anticipate that the now ignorant natives of South Africa shall one day be our rivals in knowledge. Wenbsp;read in history, that many centuries ago, a Roman army, led by annbsp;illustrious chief, visited a small and obscure island of the Atlantic, wherenbsp;the people were brutal and degraded, and as wild as the wildest beasts ;nbsp;and the then chief orator of Rome, (Cicero) in writing to a friend, said,nbsp;� There is a slave-ship arrived in the Tiber, laden with slaves from thisnbsp;island ; but do not choose any one of them, for they are not fit for use.�nbsp;This very � island� was Britain,�and the slaves of Britain were thennbsp;considered, by the Roman orator, as unworthy to be even the slaves ofnbsp;a Roman nobleman ! Yet Rome has found her rival in Britain ; andnbsp;the descendants of those very British slaves have far surpassed the sonsnbsp;of those haughty Romans ! May not then the day arrive, when the sonsnbsp;of these wretched and degraded Africans will run with us the race ofnbsp;religion and morality, and even perhaps outstrip us in the gloriousnbsp;career ? But it is of little moment to inquire whether or not such annbsp;event will ever happen,�one thing is certain, this country has now anbsp;way opened by which thousands of its sable sons will be admitted to farnbsp;greater privileges than this world could ever furnish,�the way of admission to the joys of eternal life, through the gospel.�

In 1829, the French Protestant Missionary Society sent three missionaries to South Africa, named Lemue, Bisseux, and Rollaud, who had been educated at their missionary seminary at Paris, under M. Grandnbsp;Pierre. It is worthy of observation, that at Paarl, (formerly La Parle)nbsp;a town and district thirty-five miles to the east of Cape Town, there arenbsp;a number of families descended from Reformed French refugees, who innbsp;the time of the dreadful rehgious persecutions in France, quitted theirnbsp;country for the preservation of their faith. The Dutch East India Companynbsp;granted them a considerable portion of land in 1694, and they formed anbsp;prosperous little colony, the inhabitants of which amounted, in 1830, tonbsp;10,000 souls. Dr. Philip, of the London Missionary Society, in a visitnbsp;to Paris, recommended the Society to send out their first missionaries

to this colony, and promised to render them every assistance in his power. They were cordially received by the descendants of the Frenchnbsp;refugees, and great interest was excited by their preaching in the Frenchnbsp;language, as, since 1739, the Dutch Government had prohibited thenbsp;French colonists from celebrating worship in their own language. Thenbsp;ultimate object of the Society was to establish missions among thenbsp;heathen, beyond the limits of the Cape colony : and this the tabularnbsp;view of stations will shew they have done, and with considerable success. Their three first missionaries were joined in 1831 by another, thenbsp;Rev, G. Pelissier, and in 1834 there were seven labourers from thenbsp;Paris Society working with much prospect of success. At the time thenbsp;missionaries from Paris first went to the Cape, in 1829, the Londonnbsp;Missionary Society had nine stations among the Hottentots in Capenbsp;colony : one station at Lattakoo, among the Bechuana tribes ; threenbsp;among the Griquas and Corannas, and one in Namacqualand, Thenbsp;Wesleyan Missionary Society had also at this time three stations innbsp;Cafireland, one in Namacqualand, and one in Cape Colony. The Glasgow Missionary Society had also two stations in Calfraria. I mentionnbsp;these facts chiefly to shew the progress of missionary efforts, which thenbsp;reader may do by comparing this account with the state of things innbsp;1844, as shewn in the tabular view.

In 1834, Andries Waterboer, the converted Griqua chief, accompanied Dr. Philip to Cape Town, and obtained an audience from the governornbsp;of the colony, who granted him a written treaty constituting his tribenbsp;� allies of the colony,��the first instance of the kind that had occurrednbsp;between the English Government and any native South African tribe.nbsp;� His extempore speech,� says Dr, Philip, at a public dinner to whichnbsp;he was invited in Cape Town, � perfectly astonished the whole audience,nbsp;and completely silenced all who used formerly to say that Hottentotsnbsp;could neither think nor speak, and that the missionaries made theirnbsp;speeches for them.� *

At Philippolis the work of evangelization has greatly prospered. An unprejudiced observer, (J, H. Tredfold, Esq.) who visited all the stations from Cape Town to Bufl�alo River, some few years ago, remarks :nbsp;� I have often heard it stated, and advanced even by those who stylenbsp;themselves the friends of missions, that the accounts we read in missionary reports are frequently exaggerated and at variance with facts.nbsp;I can safely assert, that every account which I have read hitherto, hasnbsp;fallen short of conveying to my mind any thing like an adequate idea ofnbsp;the great work going on at these institutions. I bear my testimony to

the indefatigable zeal with which these noble-minded and devoted men �the missionaries�persevere in their arduous duties ; and I have witnessed the patient fortitude with which the females of the mission havenbsp;borne privations, difficulties, and inconveniences of no common character, and of which their Christian sisters living in the enjoyment of civilised life, can scarcely form a correct idea.� *

E-

Q�

N o

2 No

-gquot; ! l�Mnbsp;s 6	-2 onbsp;onbsp;.�s	e quot;Snbsp;s	'S'il IK ss
413	1	50
188	1	177
94	2	44
48	�	183
33	�	82
57	�	14	1842
32	1	40
39	1	25
4	1	30
17	�	65
11	1	30	1823
9	2	45	1826
51	1	200
9	1	12
5	1	20
39	1	80
42		455
46	1	132
7 2	1	30	1842
132	1	40
53	2	102
158	1	90
75	1	45
15	1	35
N o	ret	urns.	182.3
10		75	182.3
160			1823
N 0	ret	urns.
34	6	140	1837
3	2	60	1842
150	1	100
3	1	40	18.32
r e t u	r n s.	�	1841
23	_	�	1833
49	�	77	1833
_	�	400	1835
r e t u	r n s.	�	1837
Ditto.	�	�	1837
5		71	1830
		1	1836
25	1	50	1842

Madagascar is a beautiful and fertile island, upwards of eight hundred miles in length, and three hundred in breadth. The land is low towards the sea-coasts, but a tract of mountainous country runs throughnbsp;the centre ; the highest eminences of which are six thousand feet. Itnbsp;abounds in extensive forests, and has many rivers and lakes. Tanara-rivo is the capital city, and Tamatave, on the eastern coast, the principalnbsp;sea-port. There are also some other excellent harbours. Madagascarnbsp;possesses a very fine, healthy climate, and the soil is very productive.nbsp;There is a great deal of good pasture land, and vast numbers of cattlenbsp;are reared. It contains mines of iron, copper, and tin.

It is not known when Madagascar first began to be inhabited ; nor from what nation the Malagassy people are descended. Some are ofnbsp;opinion that they owe their origin to the Arab race, while others suggestnbsp;that they may be of Malay extraction. The population is supposed tonbsp;amount to 4,000,000. Previously to the reign of the late king Ra-dama, Madagascar was divided into numerous petty sovereignties ; butnbsp;this monarch had nearly succeeded in bringing them all under hisnbsp;controul. His death took place in 1828, and he was succeeded by a'nbsp;queen, named Ranavalona, under whose arbitrary and cruel government the different states have been continually thrown into a state ofnbsp;revolt and anarchy. Radama had formed a considerable army, whom

he had supplied with muskets, and also organized a corps of artillery. He entered into a treaty with the governor of Mauritius, under whichnbsp;the latter engaged to supply him with a number of artisans, who werenbsp;sent to his capital to instruct his subjects in various useful trades andnbsp;manufactures. By this treaty he also engaged to discontinue the slave-trade throughout his dominions : but since the death of this ruler, thenbsp;present queen has encouraged slavery to a great extent. The Mala-gassy people are of a very independent character, and tenacious of theirnbsp;national rights and privileges. The government seems always to havenbsp;been despotic, and is now rendered more so by the military characternbsp;given to it by the queen, whose only aim is to subdue the island, andnbsp;bring the wealth and hves of her subjects under her own controul ; andnbsp;for this purpose she employs her generals and soldiery in plunderingnbsp;and depopulating expeditions ; and oppression and anarchy seem nownbsp;reigning to a fearful extent throughout the island. The Malagassynbsp;possess no ships or vessels of any kind whatever. The military servicenbsp;is one of great oppression and hardships, as the soldiers are not paid,nbsp;and very ill fed : they are in fact the slaves of the government, and sonbsp;are likewise many thousands of the people who are employed as artisans,nbsp;fellers of timber, and collectors of the produce peculiar to the island,nbsp;viz. gum, bees�-wax, ebony, amp;c. The only articles at present largelynbsp;exported are cattle and rice to Mauritius and Bourbon, besides hides,nbsp;horns, prepared beef, ebony, and gum-copal, and a manufactured clothnbsp;called rofia, from the beautiful palm-tree of that name.

Although a heathen nation, the natives of Madagascar are not in a state of barbarism. They appear to have acquired, from their intercourse with Arabs and Malays, (and, of late years, from Europeans,)nbsp;many of the arts and habits of civilized life. They possess large herdsnbsp;of cattle, cultivate and water by artificial means large tracts of soil, arenbsp;familiar with the value of property, and live in large communities, withnbsp;considerable regularity of municipal government. They have manufactures of iron, wood, horn, silk, cotton, and soap. Many of theirnbsp;houses are large and substantially built, chiefly of wood ; and theirnbsp;towns are well defended by large moats. Under a government lessnbsp;oppressive and rapacious, this island might soon assume an appearancenbsp;of great comfort and fertility ; and there are materials to render thenbsp;Malagassy a noble and powerful nation ; but, at present, under thenbsp;withering influence of idolatry and sin, they are most arbitrarily and

cruelly oppressed, and held in complete bondage by their rulers. They are represented, by the missionaries who have laboured among them, as annbsp;intelligent and industrious race, who are devotedly fond of their children,nbsp;and are by them, in turn, treated with respect even to old age. Theynbsp;are said, moreover, to be hospitable to strangers. This people arenbsp;mostly of a dark copper-colour, but some of the tribes are of a morenbsp;swarthy hue than others. Their features seem a mixture of the Arab,nbsp;Malay, and Negro races ; but none are found with the woolly hair ofnbsp;the latter. The men wear flowing robes fastened on the shoulder,nbsp;made of native cloth ; the women wear a short jacket with sleeves, andnbsp;over it long robes gracefully folded. They divide their time into portions of seven days each, and have many Jewish customs. They arenbsp;very apt at learning to read and write.*

* See a � Narrative of the Persecutions of the Christians in Madagascar,� by J. F. Freeman and 1). Johns, formerly missionaries in the island.

The oppressed and unhappy people of Madagascar are, as scripture says, � without hope, and without God in the world.� Their ideas of Godnbsp;are very few, confused, and imperfect. Their term for the Deity meansnbsp;literally � noble,� or � fragrant,� or � the fragrant Prince,��and by itnbsp;they intend any superior being, genius, or influence. They think Godnbsp;created the world, and that he resides somewhere far above us ; but thennbsp;the title is not confined to the Creator. It is equally applied to all thenbsp;numerous idols they worship, which generally consist of uncouth piecesnbsp;of wood, rudely joined together, and fantastically ornamented as tastenbsp;directs, or means can be afforded. They have no temples for worship,nbsp;nor any priests, but a set of persons among them are called idol-keepers ;nbsp;�these receive the offerings of the people, present their requests ornbsp;prayers to the idol, and pretend to give the answer when required.nbsp;Each person determines for himself what idol or idols he wiU have innbsp;his house, and whether many or none. There are some considerednbsp;as the guardian idols of the sovereign, and others of the kingdom, tonbsp;which especial honours are paid. Witchcraft and sorcery are muchnbsp;practised among them ; and the queen seems to have made this customnbsp;an excuse for the many cruelties and murders she has caused to be practised throughout the island ; as every suspected person, who shenbsp;wishes to get rid of, is accused of possessing some evil genius, and isnbsp;made to undergo the ordeal of drinking an emetic draught, called thenbsp;Tangena, and if the consequences, prescribed by the laws, do not foUow,nbsp;(which is rarely the case,) the sufferer is immediately put to death.nbsp;Vast numbers have been exterminated in this way upon the most trivialnbsp;pretexts during the late wars and commotions. Their ideas of the soulnbsp;are very contradictory, and mixed up with many absurdities. Theynbsp;sacrifice great numbers of cattle on the death of any person ; as thenbsp;Malagasse think they retain their existence in another place of abodenbsp;after death. But their notions of future life are very shadowy andnbsp;vague ; and have no consoling or cheering influence upon them in death.nbsp;The sacrifices which they offer have no reference to guilt, or forgivenessnbsp;of sins ; they are either thank-offerings to their gods, or presented tonbsp;obtain the blessings of this life, as health, offspring, property, or successnbsp;in trade.

� Unlo iiQu it is aiven in the beludf of CJtrist^ not only to believe on him. but also to suffer for his sakef Phil. i. 29.

The London Missionary Society commenced a mission in this island in the year 1818, under the auspices and good will of Radama, the kingnbsp;of the Hova trihe, who occupied its central and finest parts. As thisnbsp;king was favourable to the improvement of his people, the missionnbsp;made considerable progress during his life. The missionaries established twenty-eight schools in the vicinity of Tanararivo, the capital,nbsp;and a college for Malagasse youths of the higher classes of natives, whonbsp;were, at the king�s request, to be taught Greek and Latin. Twentynbsp;meetings for prayer had been set on foot by the natives and their teachers in the capital or its vicinity, and the New Testament in Malagassenbsp;was printed and circulated among them. The number of actual conversions, and consequently of baptized Christians, that had taken place innbsp;the island, was but comparatively small ; but the � praying people � (asnbsp;the candidates for baptism were called by the natives) shewed greatnbsp;attachment to the missionaries, and a desire for instruction. This statenbsp;of things was unhappily interrupted by the death of Radama, which tooknbsp;place in 1828. The accession to the throne of Queen Ranavalona, who

was chiefly desirous of subjugating the whole island to her arbitrary dominion, threw the natives into a state of anarchy and confusion, andnbsp;obliged the Christians particularly, to take shelter in the mountains, andnbsp;the missionaries subsequently to abandon the mission and leave thenbsp;country. In 1835 the queen published an edict making it a capitalnbsp;crime to hold intercourse in any way with the Christians ; in consequencenbsp;of which the missionaries, Messrs. Freeman and Johns, left Madagascarnbsp;for Mauritius in 1837. Several martyrdoms took place about this time;nbsp;the most remarkable was that of a woman named Rafaravary, the particulars of which have been given in the History of the Persecutions ofnbsp;Madagascar, already referred to. In 1838 and 1839 the missionariesnbsp;again visited the island from Mauritius, and brought away with themnbsp;six of the native Christians who had escaped the hands of their persecutors : they came to England, where they resided a short time ; one ofnbsp;them, named Sarah, died at Walthamstow, and the remaining five returned to the Mauritius with their teachers, whom they are now assisting in their labours among the Malagasse people that are employednbsp;there as labourers. The British and Foreign Bible Society have causednbsp;to be translated the entire scriptures into the Malagasse language, andnbsp;it is ready for use whenever a more favourable time shall occur for itsnbsp;introduction among this interesting people. The number of the Christians in the island have rather increased than diminished since thesenbsp;heavy persecutions commenced. The five copies of the scriptures leftnbsp;them in 1837 by the missionaries being now nearly worn out, they arenbsp;petitioning for a further supply.* There are several chiefs who have notnbsp;submitted to the queen on the eastern side of the island ; and when thenbsp;missionaries from Mauritius visited them and their people in 1842-3,nbsp;they were kindly received, and solicited bibles and instructors.

* For some very interesting letters from Malagasse converts to their late missionaries, now at Mauritius, see the � Missionary Register� for 1843.

The island of Mauritius was so named by the Dutch, in honour of Prince Maurice, in 1598. It is forty-four miles from north to south, andnbsp;thirty-three from east to west. Its appearance is in the highest degreenbsp;beautiful and picturesque. There are several ranges of mountains atnbsp;ditferent parts of the island, from which flow numerous small rivers andnbsp;streams. The height of the loftiest mountain does not, however exceednbsp;2520 feet. The capital is Port Louis, on the eastern coast, whose population in 1830 was 26,000, of whom 16,000 were coloured slaves, 3000nbsp;were Europeans, and the rest free colomed people. The thermometernbsp;in Mauritius generally ranges from 79 to 88 degrees. The mountains and eminences render the chmate that of a warm and temperatenbsp;region, although situate within the tropics. The soil requires but httlenbsp;labour to cultivate, and is particularly favourable to the growth of thenbsp;sugar cane. Since the time that the Mauritius has been in the possession of Europeans, most of the fruits and vegetables of the temperatenbsp;zones, and many of the rarest productions of the East, have been introduced and naturalized. It is extremely well-wooded, and producesnbsp;cotton, cloves, coflee, and indigo, besides sugar in abundance. Whennbsp;the Dutch settled here, in 1644, they found no animals but rats : sincenbsp;then, however, various useful quadrupeds have been introduced.

The island of Zanzibar is situated twenty miles from the eastern coast of Africa, and is fifty-five miles long by fifteen broad. There isnbsp;a town of the same name on the western coast, with an excellentnbsp;harbour. It abounds in wood, and rice and other provisions are cultivated.

When first visited, during the seventeenth century, by Europeans, Mauritius was uninhabited ; it was subsequently visited by adventurersnbsp;and pirates, till colonized by the Dutch, in 1644. They had possessionnbsp;of it till 1712, when they abandoned it altogether. The French tooknbsp;possession of it in 1721, and peopled it from their colony in the Isle ofnbsp;Bourbon (a few leagues to the west of Mauritius) : they used the islandnbsp;chiefly as a refreshing-station for their East India Company�s ships,nbsp;until the year 1784 ; when the French government established factoriesnbsp;for indigo and cotton, and it became in a short time a general depot fornbsp;their commerce with the East Indies. They introduced the sugar-cane,nbsp;erected batteries, built arsenals and wharfs, and made roads through it ;nbsp;in consequence of which improvements the population greatly increased.nbsp;In 1789, the inhabitants, excited by the revolutionary party fromnbsp;France, revolted against the governor, and set up a republican form ofnbsp;government. In 1796, the French Directory sent agents and troops tonbsp;enforce the abolition of slavery throughout the island ; but as, amongstnbsp;a population of 76,000, 55,000 were slaves, it was not probable thatnbsp;this measure would be quietly adopted ; the principal inhabitants tooknbsp;up arms, and the French troops were driven out of the island. Afternbsp;this, cultivation rapidly increased, and many European adventurersnbsp;settled there. When Napoleon Buonaparte sent a strong force intonbsp;these seas, to annoy our commerce and injure our trade with India,nbsp;Great Britain opposed him with her fleets, and succeeded in capturingnbsp;Mauritius from the French, in 1810, and the island has ever since remained one of her colonial dependencies.

The population, in 1832, consisted of 13,000 whites, 26,000 free coloured people, 89,000 slaves.*

The isle of Zanzibar is inhabited by Arabs, who employ a great number of negro slaves to cultivate the soil. The Americans carry onnbsp;a trade in the island, and have a resident consul here.

Among the coloured population in Mauritius there are at present supposed to be about 5000 natives of Madagascar. Slavery was abolished

by British law in the island in 1834, hut no remuneration was granted to the planters, as in the case of our West India islands. It is to henbsp;feared much intolerance has been shown towards the coloured population, and very little has been as yet done for them in the way of education or improvement, so that much ignorance and immorahty prevailsnbsp;among them. The great majority of the Europeans are of the Romannbsp;Catholic religion ; and so are the inhabitants of the Seychelles islands,nbsp;which are a colonial dependency to the Mauritius. Tlie Mahometannbsp;creed prevails in Zanzibar, though many of the African slaves in- thisnbsp;island are heathens. All religions are tolerated by the Sultan of Muscat,nbsp;within whose dominions it is Included.

Tlie Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in conjunction with the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, has of late years provided for several schools in Mauritius, which yet stands greatly in neednbsp;of further assistance in the instruction and evangelization of the thousands of liberated slaves and free coloured labouring people. Thenbsp;London Society missionaries, joined by those who are exiled fromnbsp;Madagascar, with some Malagasse assistant teachers, are labouring herenbsp;with much perseverance and zeal. At the Seychelles, the Society fornbsp;the Propagation of the Gospel is attempting to introduce Christianity,nbsp;though it has received much opposition from the Roman Catholic inhabitants of these islands.

To the island of Zanzibar the American board has sent missionaries, who it is thought will not be opposed by the Mahometan rulers.

In 1844, Mr. .lohns, of the London Missionary Society attempted to establish a mission at Nosimitsio (one of the four islands to the northeast coast of Madagascar), through the instrumentality of the Malagassenbsp;teachers, Mary and Joseph. They succeeded in teaching several nativesnbsp;to read the word of God, when the Roman Catholic priest interfered,nbsp;and by his influence with the French authorities, who have possessionnbsp;of the island, the mission was suppressed. Since this event that indefatigable and zealous missionary, Mr. Johns, has been called to his rest.nbsp;He compiled, while labouring in Madagascar, the Malagasse and Englishnbsp;Dictionary, which was printed at the mission press at Tanararivo, beforenbsp;the persecutions commenced there against the Christians ; he translatednbsp;the Pilgrim�s Progress, and took part in the translation of the Malagassenbsp;Scriptures, besides compiling various tracts and hymns in that language,*nbsp;* See Missionary Register, for February, 1845.

The countries included within this varied region which have been visited by Protestant missionaries, are, Turkey in Europe, the Ionian Isles,nbsp;�Greece, and the islands of the Archipelago, and the Levant ; Asia Minor,nbsp;and the confines of Persia -, Syria, Egypt, and Abyssinia. The whole district, with the exception of Egypt and Arabia, is diversified with largenbsp;tracts of mountainous country, and is upon the whole both fertile andnbsp;beautiful. None of the mountains are very lofty, but in some parts (asnbsp;in Lebanon and others) their tops are constantly covered with snow.

The countries encircling the Levant were formerly very populous and wealthy, but in consequence of the indolence of the Mahometans, andnbsp;the oppressive character of the Turkish government, they are now verynbsp;unproductive, and their inhabitants, generally speaking, in a very poornbsp;and miserable condition. We must, however, except from this generalnbsp;character, the Ionian islands, Malta, the Morea, and some of the islandsnbsp;of the Grecian Archipelago, which, not being under the Turkish yoke,nbsp;present a more cheerful and cultivated aspect.

All the countries bordering upon the inland seas, both those in Europe and in Asia, are calculated by nature to be extremely fruitful, asnbsp;their climate and soil are excellent. The shores of the Mediterraneannbsp;sea are favourable to the production of the plants belonging to the hotnbsp;as well as to the temperate climate : there may be seen, at one view,nbsp;the date, the sugar-cane, the banana, the orange, the citron, the olive,nbsp;and the Indian tamarind, with most of the fruits and the forest-trees ofnbsp;Europe, t

* This term includes all those countries which border upon the Mediterranean, the Red, the Black, and the Caspian Seas, together with the Persian Gulf.

But we will proceed to mention separately some of the countries which surround, and are within, the Inland Seas, to which missionariesnbsp;have heen sent. Malta is an island distant from the coast of Sicilynbsp;fifty-six miles, and from the African coast nearly two hundred ; itsnbsp;greatest length is sixteen miles, and it is nine miles in breadth. It isnbsp;rather low, but diversified with hill and dale, and the natural industry ofnbsp;the Maltese has converted an apparently barren rock into a picturesquenbsp;country. The chief town, Valetta, is very strongly fortified, and is thenbsp;head-quarters for our shipping in the Mediterranean. The climate isnbsp;hot, the thermometer ranging from 90 to 46 degrees. The sirocco, anbsp;hot, damp wind, from the south-east, prevails during the months ofnbsp;August, September, and October. The soil is calcareous, and formednbsp;upon a substratum of limestone rock. The chief productions of thenbsp;island which are cultivated are cotton, wheat, barley, pulse, fruits, andnbsp;vegetables. There are horses, mules, cattle, sheep, and goats. Thenbsp;population is upwards of 100,000. Snow is never seen there, but isnbsp;brought from Etna in Sicily, and used as a luxury and a medicine.

Corfu is the most northerly of the seven Ionian islands. It is forty-one miles long, and eighteen broad. The soil is formed of a stiff clay, which well retains the moisture ; there are marshy vallies, and a fewnbsp;small streams, which run from the mountains which extend throughnbsp;the island, and are in some parts 2000 feet high. The climate is of anbsp;tropical character ; snow is seldom seen ; but on the Albanian mountains, on the opposite coast, it remains from November to May. Thisnbsp;island is particularly favourable to the growth of the olive, which is herenbsp;extensively cultivated. Corfu, the capital city, eontains 18,000 inhabitants.*

Greece is a picturesque and extremely mountainous country. To the north are the snowy summits which separate this country from Turkey,nbsp;from whence descend numerous other small chains, running south, andnbsp;enclosing large plains of rich alluvial soil. � Agriculture,� says Murray, � is carried on with bad cattle and rude impliments, yet so genialnbsp;are the climate and the soil, that the harvests are generally very plentiful. Wheat, barley, and maize are cultivated, and likewise cotton,nbsp;which is raised to a great extent in the plains of Macedonia, and is thenbsp;principal export from the Morea. The olive flourishes throughoutnbsp;Greece ; that species of grape, producing the fruit which, when dried,nbsp;we call currants, is peculiar to the Morea and the Ionian islands, fromnbsp;which it is largely exported. But Greece is altogether a pastoralnbsp;country, and vast numbers of cattle, sheep, and goats are fed on thenbsp;sides of the hills.� That part of Greece which is without the Morea,

is divided into Western Greece, of which the chief town is Missolonghi ; and Eastern, of which Athens is the capital. Napoli and Patras are thenbsp;principal sea-ports of the Morea. The town of Joannina is situated innbsp;Albania.

The island of Candia (or Crete), is rich and fertile, and is noted for its peculiar breed of horned sheep. The small island of Syra is a place ofnbsp;importance with regard to the commerce of the Levant, and it has anbsp;most excellent harbour.

Among the vegetable productions growing wild in Greece and the neighbouring islands, are the myrtle, the bay, the laurel, the Spanishnbsp;chesnut, the olive, pomegranate, citron, and mulberry, the walnut, thenbsp;peach, and apricot, the beautiful gum-cistus, the white lily, the rhododendron, and the saifron.

Smyrna is the principal sea-port for trade on the coast of Asia Minor. This country is very mountainous in the interior, but slopes down to anbsp;tine fertile plain towards the sea. It is capable, from its climate andnbsp;soil, of producing almost every species of agricultural wealth ; but culture is rendered insecure by the oppression of the Turkish pachas (whonbsp;govern it), and the frequent inroads of the plundering Arabs. Thenbsp;seven churches of Asia, mentioned in the three first chapters of Revelations, were situated as it were in a circle, about a hundred miles to thenbsp;north and east of Smyrna. An interesting account of their recentnbsp;condition is to be found in the Church Missionary�s quarterly papernbsp;for July, 1827.

Constantinople is the capital city of the Turkish empire, and is supposed to contain half a million of inhabitants. It is the largest and most beautiful city in Europe. The city itself, where only Turks arenbsp;permitted to dwell, is eighteen miles in circumference ; the suburbsnbsp;(which make it 24 miles round), are inhabited by Armenians, Jews, andnbsp;Franks. The streets are very narrow and dirty, which accounts for thenbsp;great prevalence of the plague in this city.

In the northern parts of Asia Minor the mountains and valhes are covered with forests. The climate here becomes colder than in Greecenbsp;or Syria, notwithstanding which the myrtle, the olive, the arbutus, andnbsp;pomegranate are met with in abundance at the foot of the hills. Thenbsp;town of Broosa is beautifully situated near the southern shores of thenbsp;Sea of Marmora, in an extensive plain clothed with magnificent forests. It has manufactures of silk and cotton cloths, which are carriednbsp;on chiefly by Armenians, who reside here in number about 7000.nbsp;Broosa contains 60,000 inhabitants, and keeps up a constant intercoursenbsp;with Smyrna and Aleppo. Not far from Broosa are Nice (now innbsp;ruins), where the great ecclesiastical councils were held, and Nicomedia,

the occasional residence of the emperor Constantine the Great. The country at the south-eastern comer of the Black Sea, still known by thenbsp;name of Armenia, is enclosed with steep and rugged mountains, and isnbsp;fertile in corn and pasturage. The winter here is extremely cold, andnbsp;the ground is covered with snow from October to March. Erzeroum,nbsp;the capital, is situated upon very high ground, on the frontiers of thenbsp;Russian and Persian territories. Its trade has very much declined ofnbsp;late ; and since its temporary occupation by the Russians many Armenians have left it. It does not now contain more than 15,000 inhabitants. Trebizond, on the shores of the Black Sea, is the chief emporiumnbsp;of the European trade with Persia. In 1835, seven-tenths of its imports were of British produce. It contains 30,000 inhabitants, of whomnbsp;4000 are Greeks and 2000 Armenians. Ooroomiah is situated on thenbsp;mountainous confines of Persia, near a large salt lake of the same name.nbsp;This town (as well as Mosul, on the banks of the Tigris,) is the residence of most of the Nestorian Christians. Tokat, where the celebratednbsp;and lamented Henry Martyn died, is in Asia Minor.

The central parts of Asia Minor are composed of a high table-land, for the most part destitute of trees, and enclosed within lofty ridges ofnbsp;mountains. Though it is now barren, it is capable of successful cultivation. On the banks of the rivers are rich pastures, occupied by thenbsp;wandering Turcomans, whose habits of life are almost wholly Tartar.nbsp;Beyond these, in the mountainous district of Koordistan, live thenbsp;Koords, a fierce and warlike race, who chiefly subsist by plunder. Therenbsp;were formerly many fine and extensive cities in Asia Minor, but most ofnbsp;them are now in ruins, and the remaining inhabitants reduced to greatnbsp;wretchedness. Nevertheless, in some of them manufactures of carpets,nbsp;fine camlets, copper vessels, and opium, are still carried on. The Angoranbsp;goat, whose fine silky hair is an important article of commerce, is onlynbsp;met with in these regions.

The missionary stations situated on, or near, the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, are the city of Aleppo, the sea-port of Beyrout, and the villages of Deir-el-Kamer and Abieh ; the two last, situated in thenbsp;mountainous district of Lebanon, are chiefly inhabited by Druses andnbsp;Maronite Christians. Throughout the north of Syria, the people arenbsp;extremely poor and neglected. Yet the vallies, when cultivated,nbsp;produce wheat and other grain; and the myrtle, laurel, fig, arbutus, and sycamore, grow in profusion on the slopes of the hiUs.nbsp;� Aleppo is a place of some trade, and English merchants reside here.nbsp;The best way to enter Mesopotamia and the country of the Nestoriansnbsp;is through Aleppo.�* This city and Smyrna are the only two places innbsp;* See Annual Report of the American Board of Missions, 1841.

Turkey in Asia which retain any commercial importance ; the former is chiefly supported by the caravan trade of interior Africa ; and the latternbsp;exports raw silk, goats�-hair. Turkey-carpets, raisins, drugs, and gums,nbsp;in exchange for the cloths and hardware of Europe.

Cyprus is a most fertile and luxuriant island ; the vine, olive, and fig are here cultivated. The inhabitants of each village carry on a separatenbsp;trade to themselves.

We will now close our brief sketch of this once-celebrated region, by giving our readers a short description of the city of Jerusalem. � Thenbsp;approach is generally from the south, by Gaza and the small sea-portnbsp;of Joppa (or Jaffa), upon leaving which the traveller enters upon thenbsp;vale of Sharon, still remarkable for its beautiful roses. After passingnbsp;several villages, mostly in ruins, he arrives at the foot of the dark hillsnbsp;which form the rugged centre of Judea, and enters the village of Ramanbsp;(the ancient Arimathea), standing in a fertile plain ; the houses beingnbsp;only a collection of plaster huts, interspersed with olives, figs, and finenbsp;palm-trees. From Rama, he ascends to the hill-country of Judea, whichnbsp;is a gloomy, steep, and rocky district, of about thirty miles in extent.nbsp;The Arabs have formed stations in these mountain-fastnesses, and bynbsp;their plundering warlike habits render this the most dangerous part of thenbsp;journey through the Holy Land. Having passed this, the Mahometannbsp;guides exclaim, � El-Kods ! � (the Holy City !) and Jerusalem appears innbsp;view. It is built on the summits and sides of four hills : a part of what isnbsp;commonly supposed to be Mount Zion is covered only with ruins. Thenbsp;walls were formerly four miles in circuit, but are now only two-and-a-half ; the houses are heavy square masses, very low, and withoutnbsp;chimneys or windows, and look like prisons or sepulchres. The steeplesnbsp;of the churches and the minarets of the mosques alone break the uniformity and dullness of the scene. The streets are very narrow and unpaved ;nbsp;and canvas stretched from house to house, increases the general gloomnbsp;of the desolate city. A few paltry shops and bazaars, roofed over, exposenbsp;nothing but wretchedness to view ; and very few inhabitants are to benbsp;seen about the streets.� Such is part of the account given by the celebrated traveller M. de Chateaubriand. The two great objects in Jerusalem, visible from some distance, are the church of the Holy Sepulchre,nbsp;built by the mother of the Emperor Constantine in the third century, andnbsp;the mosque of Omar, erected by the Mahometans in the seventh century.nbsp;The latter is most magnificent, and covered with gilding. The church ofnbsp;the Holy Sepulchre belongs to the monks of the Greek and Latin churches.nbsp;Small apartments built round its walls, are inhabited by these monks, asnbsp;well as by Abyssinians, Coptic, Maronite, and Armenian Christians.*nbsp;* See Murray�s Encyclopedia of Geography, 1835.

Upon leaving Palestine and Syria, we cross the Isthmus of Suez, and again find ourselves on the continent of Africa. To the west of thenbsp;Red Sea are Egypt and Abyssinia, the only two countries, borderingnbsp;on the Inland Seas, which now remain for us to notice, as being thenbsp;scene of missionary labours.

The only cultivated or inhabited part of Egypt, is the narrow strip on each side the banks of the great River Nile ; the rest is barren andnbsp;unfruitful. Cairo was founded by the Mahometans in 973, and is anbsp;magnificent city, as regards the outward splendor of its buildings. Itsnbsp;gates and mosques display all the grandeur of Saracenic architecture.nbsp;The streets are unpaved and very narrow ; the principal one, which traverses the whole area of the city, would be considered in Europe a merenbsp;lane.* When the Nile overflows its banks, its waters are conveyednbsp;into large open squares near the city, thereby converting them intonbsp;lakes. On the retiring of the waters, these lakes become so manynbsp;plains of mud, which, by the heat of the sea, are soon dried, and coverednbsp;with excellent vegetation. With regard to trade, Cairo forms the grandnbsp;link between the Asiatic and African continents, and it is perhaps thenbsp;greatest thoroughfare of any city in the world.f Slaves are importednbsp;in vast numbers from the interior of Africa, and exposed here for salenbsp;in the public slave-markets. Cairo is seven miles in circuit, but a greatnbsp;part is occupied by gardens and empty spaces. Each street is shuUin,nbsp;and guarded by janissaries at night. It is reckoned to contain 250,000nbsp;inhabitants.

The chmate of Egypt is extremely hot, and the soil very dry and sandy ; but vegetation is much increased by the periodical inundationsnbsp;of the Nile, which rises and overflows its banks for three months in thenbsp;year, bringing with it a quantity of rich mud, containing seeds of variousnbsp;plants growing near the Equator, which quickly spring up when thenbsp;waters retire. Date-trees are cultivated to a great extent, and likewisenbsp;different sorts of corn. The Papyrus and the Lotus, (or water-lily) arenbsp;the peculiar growth of this region. The rivers abound with crocodilesnbsp;and hippopotami.

Descending the Red Sea, we come to the kingdom of Abyssinia, bounded on the north by the deserts of Nubia, traversed by wanderingnbsp;Arabs. On the west it has Sennar, and on the south the Mahometannbsp;kingdom of Adel ; but the greater part of these two last frontier landsnbsp;consists of wild regions occupied by the Galla nations, who alwaysnbsp;ravaged, and have recently conquered a large portion of Abyssinia.nbsp;The entrance to Abyssinia for Europeans is by the town of Massowah,

built on an island in the Red Sea, a short distance to the south of which is Arkeeko, once a celebrated sea-port for trade, but containing nownbsp;only a few miserable houses. The place of greatest note at present innbsp;Abyssinia is Adowa, which contains about 6000 people ; cotton clothsnbsp;are manufactured here, and about 1000 slaves pass through it annually.nbsp;Trade is chiefly in the hands of the Mahometan inhabitants. The province of Tigre is a rocky and mountainous district. That of Amharanbsp;in the centre of Abyssinia, consists of extensive plains, which yieldnbsp;abundance of corn and cattle. Till Abyssinia was overrun by the Gallanbsp;tribes, Amhara was the residence of the sovereign, who now makesnbsp;Gondar his capital. Shoa is a fine rich province to the south, whichnbsp;has been occupied by the Gallas, and is now governed by a branch ofnbsp;the ancient royal family of Abyssinia. The climate is rendered mildernbsp;in Abyssinia by its being a very mountainous region ; and snow frequently covers the highest summits. Cattle and horses are to be metnbsp;with in this country, and throughout it the camel is the most usefulnbsp;animal met with.

Aden is a town at the south-western comer of Arabia, which Great Britain possessed herself of by purchase in 1840. Major Harris, whonbsp;was sent by the British Government at Bombay to conclude a treaty ofnbsp;commerce with the king of Shoa, has thus described it ; � Cape Adennbsp;rises 1800 feet above the ocean, a wild and fissured mass of rock, evidently intended by nature as a beacon to announce the approach of annbsp;inland sea. It has a noble bay : ruins of fortifications and watch-towersnbsp;along the rocks, shew the remains of a large city, which existed therenbsp;500 years ago. The supply of coals necessary for the British steamships, to and from Bombay, has introduced a new trade here. Gangsnbsp;of brawny Leedies, (negro slaves from the Zanzibar coast, but nownbsp;enfranchised) make a livelihood by transferring the coals from the depots on shore to the steamers. A considerable British garrison is maintained here, as a defence against the Arabs, and a protection to ournbsp;property. The Arab is still the prominent person among the nativenbsp;population of this territory ; the bronzed and sun-bumt visage, surrounded by long matted locks of raven hair ; the slender, but wiry andnbsp;active frame, and the energetic gait and manner, proclaim the untame-able descendant of Ishmael. Aden (barren as the soil is) is evidentlynbsp;approaching to a prosperity it never before possessed. Emigrants fromnbsp;Yemen and from both shores of the Red Sea are daily crowding withinnbsp;its waUs, on account of the security they offer against native oppression.nbsp;In the short space of three years the population has risen to 20,000nbsp;souls. Substantial dwellings are rising up in every quarter ; and at allnbsp;the adjacent ports hundreds of native merchants are only waiting the

erection of permanent fortifications, in token of our intending to remain, to flock under our guns with their families and wealth.� The opinionnbsp;of Major Harris seems to he, that Aden, as a free port, while she poursnbsp;wealth into a now-impoverished land, must rank one day among thenbsp;most useful dependencies of the British Crown.*

Malta and Corfu both belong to Great Britain, and are governed in a similar manner to the rest of her colonies. Malta was taken out of thenbsp;hands of the Knights of St. John by the French in 1792, and yieldednbsp;to the British arms in 1800. Corfu is one of the seven Ionian Islands,nbsp;which formerly belonged to the Venetian Republic ; it came into thenbsp;possession of Great Britain in 1814, after having been claimed by France,nbsp;as forming a part of the Austrian dominions since 1797.

Greece, consisting chiefly of the Morea, and some of the adjoining small islands, at present forms an independent kingdom, at the head ofnbsp;which the allied powers have placed Otho, a prince of the house ofnbsp;Bavaria. The Greeks in 1820 made a violent struggle to throw off thenbsp;Turkish yoke, and after ten years of war and internal dissension, Britain,nbsp;France, and Russia interfered, and by the treaty of London, the Portenbsp;was obliged to consent to its independence. The population is computed at 657,000. Albania (the district to the north of independentnbsp;Greece) contains about 1,200,000 inhabitants, of whom a considerablenbsp;proportion are Turks. This district still continues subject to the Turkishnbsp;empire. The form of government assigned by the allied powers tonbsp;Greece is constitutional monarchy, but the capitani, or mountain-chiefs,nbsp;are not held in much subjection. The navy consists of upwards of 300nbsp;vessels ; but none of them are large, and they are chiefly used for purposes of trade and commerce.

In Turkey, the government is absolute,�that is, the whole administration of affairs (civil, military, and religious) is subject to the control of one man, (the Sultan, or Grand Seignor). The Turkish dominions in Asia and Africa are divided into several pachalics, overnbsp;which the sultan appoints viceroys, or pachas, having the same absolutenbsp;control over the lives and property of their subjects as he has himself.nbsp;Some of these pachas, as Mahomet Ali, the pacha of Egypt, have nearlynbsp;thrown off the yoke of the sultan ; which has also been the case in thenbsp;province of Syria. There are several officers of state in Turkey, who all

derive arbitrary power from the sultan ; such as the grand mufti, the Capitan pacha (or lord high admiral) and the reis effendi, an officer combining that of Chancellor and Secretary of state. The body of mennbsp;called moUahs is the only class of persons approaching in character to anbsp;national council ; these ought to be nominated by the grand mufti, andnbsp;with some regard to hereditary right, but the sultan generally choosesnbsp;them himself, and from pure favour. The Koran and its commentariesnbsp;form the only law of the empire, and the mollahs are educated in thenbsp;colleges attached to the mosques. Under the mussulman system, thenbsp;spiritual and temporal powers are considered essentially one. Any person may be put to death at the pleasure or will of the sultan, who leviesnbsp;a tax or fine upon all his subjects who are not Mahometans. In Constantinople the despised Christians are subject to much oppression andnbsp;extortion. Except about 15,000 cavalry, chiefly used as guards to thenbsp;sultan and his officers of state, there are no regular paid troops in Turkey ; but every landholder is obliged to support and bring into the fieldnbsp;annually a certain number of armed men, whose services are only nominally required from April to October, though they are often detainednbsp;longer. It is not at all known what is the revenue of the Turkish empire ; its chief sources are�the capitation-tax (paid by all subjects notnbsp;Mahometans), fines, and confiscations, the customs, and the monopolynbsp;of grain. Manufactures are at a very low ebb in Turkey, and the restraints imposed upon commerce by the government are very numerous.nbsp;The dyeing and preparing fine leather is carried on in Gallipolis andnbsp;other towns along the Dardanelles. Carpets are made in Asia Minor,nbsp;chiefly by females. Silk is produced in abundance in the plains ofnbsp;Adrianople ; and great numbers of bees are reared in this country,nbsp;which yield a profusion of excellent honey and wax. The principalnbsp;other exports are wool, buffalo�s hides, goat�s hair, cotton, copper vessels, raisins, figs, drugs, and opium. Trade is mainly carried on bynbsp;the tributary races,�Armenians and Frank merchants at Constantinople. Dyeing and spinning cotton are extensively attended to in Greece.nbsp;When it belonged to Turkey, its inhabitants were not permitted to holdnbsp;any office under government whatever ; though they were suffered tonbsp;carry on many lucrative occupations, by which they acquired a degreenbsp;of wealth and importance ; thus was excited in them that characteristicnbsp;love of independence, which produced at length the insurrection, thatnbsp;ended in their complete freedom.

The mountainous tracts of country in Asiatic Turkey are held by bold and hardy tribes, whose chiefs admit of but little control from thenbsp;pachas. In Koordistan, the fierce and warlike inhabitants live by plunder and violence ; they are, however, at the same time, hospitable to

strangers. The English have a consul at Mosul, who is respected and feared by the Koords. The Turks, Koords, and Nestorians are constantly at war with one another.

Mahomet Ali, the present pacha of Egypt is a native of a town in Asia Minor, and is of a bold and enterprizing character. He commenced his independent career by confiscating the whole of the soil ofnbsp;Egypt, with the exception of the lands in the vicinity of the cities,nbsp;and on these the land-tax was doubled : he obliged the landholders tonbsp;grow only such produce as he prescribed, and prohibited them fromnbsp;selling it to any one but himself,�thus reducing all classes to thenbsp;condition of serfs, dependent upon his bounty ; for he engaged to paynbsp;back to the people the value of their property, after first deductingnbsp;whatever amount of taxation he chose to levy upon them. He alsonbsp;took for himself the revenues of all mosques, and charitable institutions ;nbsp;allowing them a small annual support. This monopoly of the soil andnbsp;its produce, has enabled the pacha to form an army, and to build andnbsp;man a fleet, quite disproportioned to the population of Egypt. Thenbsp;tributes he has levied upon the conquered countries of Sennaar, Nubia,nbsp;and Arabia, have assisted to a certain extent. He has reduced somenbsp;of the Arab tribes to submission, and employed them on his publicnbsp;works, especially on the canal from Alexandria to Cairo, which he hasnbsp;achieved at a great loss of the lives of his subjects. His army is butnbsp;ill fed and clothed ; nevertheless, the Arabs fear his name, and he Lasnbsp;secured respect and safety for his Christian subjects, encouraged commerce with Europe, and promoted talent and learning by establishingnbsp;schools for both sexes in his capital. Egypt has been governed bynbsp;foreign princes and usurpers ever since the time of Cambyses, thusnbsp;fulfilling the prophecy of Ezekiel xxx. 13; �And there shall be nonbsp;more a prince of the land of Egypt.�

Mahomet Ali, and his son Ibrahim Pacha, endeavoured in like manner to obtain possession of Syria, and for a time were successful ; but by the taking of St. Jean d�Acre, Nov. 3, 1840, by the Turkish andnbsp;alhed powers, the sultan�s authority was re-established in Syria, andnbsp;Mahomet Ali forced to abandon all claim to it, and confine himself tonbsp;the hereditary government of Egypt, in which the allied powers securednbsp;him. From want of strength and resources of the Turkish empire,nbsp;however, the authority it holds in Syria is merely nominal, while amongnbsp;its various tribes there is none which, from its numbers or power, isnbsp;able to exercise any paramount controul over the thinly-peopled country. The way, therefore, seems to be opening remarkably for the restoration of the Jews. They are, perhaps, the most numerous and

powerful race now in the Turkish empire, and are known to have great influence at Constantinople.*

The Greeks have been described, in regard to character, in an unfavourable light by some writers, who have considered them avaricious, cunning, and intriguing, and almost entirely governed by motives ofnbsp;self-interest. The reproach, however, seems to be mainly due to thenbsp;inhabitants of the towns, and the rich Greeks of Constantinople ; thenbsp;peasantry are a very fine race of people, and during their late strugglenbsp;for independance, have shown great bravery and energy of character.nbsp;The Greeks are generally acute, and of graceful manners ; and are distinguished for beauty and delicacy of complexion. The capitani (ornbsp;mountain chiefs) are hospitable and courteous, and show a paternalnbsp;kindness towards their retainers. The females are treated with muchnbsp;more respect, and enjoy greater liberty than among the Turks. Thenbsp;Greeks of the cities, when they become rich, often study to imitate thenbsp;manners of their Turkish neighbours, who are the only models of grandeur that exist within their observation. Since the establishment of anbsp;monarchical government, and the restoration of national independencenbsp;in Greece, learning and education have been considerably revived, andnbsp;several schools have been established, especially at Athens, Argos, Tri-polizza, and in most of the islands.

The national character and aspect of the Turk is thoroughly oriental, and in every point different from those of the western European nations.nbsp;The men wear long flowing robes, which entirely conceal the limbs. Theirnbsp;habits are those of luxurious indolence ; and they seldom stir or walk except for special purposes or business. They sit cross-legged, especially atnbsp;meals ; and when they enter a house, take off, not the hat or head-dress,nbsp;but the shoes. They are passionately fond of smoking ; and though theynbsp;seldom taste wine or spirits, make great use of the intoxicating and stu-pifying drug, opium. The Turkish women are excluded from all society,nbsp;and never permitted to walk abroad. Among the lower orders thenbsp;women are considered very much as slaves, and perform most of thenbsp;hard work. The rich purchase their wives, generally from among thenbsp;Circassians and other Caucasian tribes. The character of the Turk exhibits many striking'contrasts ; their abject submission to authority, which

is considered a religious duty, is combined with the pride of a conquering people, and the consciousness of being surrounded by those whom they have subdued ; yet the Turk seems to have a sense of personalnbsp;dignity, which raises him above the system of falsehood and deceit,nbsp;which is, as it were, rooted throughout the East. Though the Turk isnbsp;generally sedate and placid, his rage when once roused is furious andnbsp;ungovernable. Hospitality and alms-giving they carry to a great extent, and this humanity is not confined to their own species, for in Constantinople the dogs are allowed to be so numerous as to become quite anbsp;nuisance. The learning of the Turks is comprized within a very limitednbsp;compass. The studies pursued in the colleges attached to the mosquesnbsp;have no tendency whatever to enlarge the mind, or to adapt it for thenbsp;duties of active life,�consisting of the logic of the dark ages, and thenbsp;most trivial questions respecting the useless ceremonies connected withnbsp;their religion. The state of social existence, learning, and manners, asnbsp;far as regards the ruling people (the Turks), is precisely the same, innbsp;Asiatic as in European Turkey ; but the conquered people in the mountain districts show more independance and hardihood, and their habitsnbsp;are more decidedly Tartar, especially in Mesopotamia and Armenia.nbsp;Syria, Palestine, and Bagdad have attracted great numbers of Arabsnbsp;from the vast deserts by which these countries are bordered. Thesenbsp;people have a more gay and polished address than the Turks. Thenbsp;various sects of eastern Christians inhabiting these regions, differ considerably in habits and manners from either Turks or Arabs. Thenbsp;Armenians are quiet, industrious and exclusive. The Koords, fierce,nbsp;warlike, extremely hospitable, and have a great degree of national pride.nbsp;The Latins, or Franks, are almost all monks, and in their manners andnbsp;habits are essentially European. The Maronites and Druses in Mountnbsp;Lebanon are more independent of Turkish rule than any of the othernbsp;races ; they are simple and frugal in their way of life, and recognizenbsp;scarcely any distinction of ranks : the former are very resentful, thenbsp;latter are hospitable and warm-hearted. � In most places in the interior of Asia Minor, the Turkish is the language of the Greeks andnbsp;Armenians. There exists among the Greeks a strong desire to revivenbsp;their own language. They use the Turkish rather because they seemnbsp;compelled to it, than because they love it. The Armenians seem not tonbsp;possess the same partiality for their language, although it is rich andnbsp;copious ; yet they are content to use the Turkish, although it is not sonbsp;well adapted to express the ideas and emotions of a Christian people.� *

The Copts of Egypt are a poor, ignorant, and despised race of beings, and the Abyssinians are still more barbarous. Tlie Copts are nationally the only remnant of the ancient Egyptians. Their numbers havenbsp;been gradually diminishing ; at one time they were reckoned at 500,000,nbsp;now they are supposed to be not 50,000, They have almost lost theirnbsp;own language, (substituting for it the Arabic). They are employednbsp;by the Egyptian government as secretaries or scribes, and have beennbsp;brought so much in contact with Mahommedans that they have intermarried with the Arabs, and some of them have embraced their religion.

The various forms of religion professed by the inhabitants of the countries included under the title of Inland Seas, are, 1. Mahometanism,nbsp;2. Christianity, 3. Judaism.

Mahomet, the founder of the false religion which bears his name, was boni in 570 at Mecca in Arabia, of the noble family of Koreish. Losingnbsp;his father while very young, his uncle brought him up, and employednbsp;him as a camel-driver, in his caravan, which traded annually to Da-

mascus. Whilst hid in a cave near Mecca, with the help of three of his followers he wrote the Koran, which has ever since been considerednbsp;by the Mahometans as their sacred book. It begins with this sentence :nbsp;� There is but one God, and Mahomet is his prophet.� He afterwardsnbsp;resolved to propagate his opinions by the sword. When he was fifty-two years of age (in a.d. 622), being threatened with death by hisnbsp;enemies, he fled to Medina, another city of Arabia ; and it is from thenbsp;time when this took place (called the Hegira, or Flight,} that the Mussulmans compute their time : they celebrate the event every year by anbsp;fast, called the � Ramazan.� Ten years afterwards, Mahomet undertook his farewell pilgrimage to Mecca, in great pomp, and attended bynbsp;a very numerous retinue of his followers and supporters, which occurrence is celebrated by the Mahometans by an annual pilgrimage tonbsp;Mecca. Mahomet died soon after his return to Mecca, aged 63.

Mahometanism is the established religion throughout the whole of the Turkish empire, as also in Persia, Arabia, and the whole of thenbsp;North of Africa. � The Turk is imbued, from his earliest infancy, withnbsp;the loftiest conception of his own spiritual state, and with a minglednbsp;hatred and contempt of every other religion. This feeling is entertainednbsp;not only against the � Infidel,' (the name he gives to Christians,) butnbsp;still more deeply towards the Persian Schiites, a sect of Mahometans,nbsp;whose tenets respecting their head and founder, Ali, are so detested bynbsp;the Turks, that they think it as meritorious to kill one Schiite as twentynbsp;Christians. The chief observances of the Mahometan religion are thenbsp;namez, or prayer, repeated five times a-day, preceded by ablution, andnbsp;accompanied by prostrations ; and the observance of the fast of the Ramazan, when, during a whole month, neither solid food nor liquid is tastednbsp;before sunset. The strict observance of these ceremonies is considerednbsp;by the Mussulman as securing paradise, without the necessity of repentance or good works. The Sultan is the head of the church, butnbsp;devolves the duties connected with religious service on his inferiors.nbsp;The mosques (or places of Mahometan worship) have certain officersnbsp;attached to them, as the muezzin, who, from the tops of the minarets,nbsp;calls the neighbourhood to prayers ; the shieks, or kialibs, who preachnbsp;and read ; and the imaum, who has the general care of the mosque, andnbsp;in the villages performs aU other sacred duties. These functionariesnbsp;are not distinguished from the rest of the citizens either by habit ornbsp;deportment. The disuse of wine, the giving of alms, and the foundingnbsp;of caravanseras (or public inns) is practised on a great scale by thenbsp;Mahometan, from religious motives. The first of these is a good dealnbsp;evaded, yet religion has certainly effected the general substitution ofnbsp;coffee and opium. Predestination, or fatalism, is generally received by

them ; indeed it is ever in their mouths.� * The Koran is full of fables and deceit, though there are some few ideas and sentences in it borrowed from the Bible.

� The Mahometans look upon the native Eastern Christians (dispersed throughout the Turkish dominions), as living exemplifications of what Christianity is : they see that these Christians are in morals nonbsp;better than themselves�they think even worse ; and they have thenbsp;greatest abhorrence of the use they make of pictures and images innbsp;their worship. The consequences are inevitable,�the Mahometannbsp;confidently asserts the Koran to be more excellent than the Bible, andnbsp;his religion than the gospel. In vain do we reply, that these Easternnbsp;Christians have lost the knowledge and spirit of the pure gospel ofnbsp;Christ ; and that therefore their immoral lives are in no sense thenbsp;effects of the gospel. The Mahometan has never seen any other perhaps, and he will not read the Bible, to correct the evidence of hisnbsp;senses, and he treats that holy book with the same contempt which henbsp;feels for its professed followers.' Hence any efforts for the conversionnbsp;of the Mahometans of Western Asia must embrace the spiritual renovation of the Oriental decayed Christian churches.� f

Let us now proceed to give a brief sketch of these several sects of Eastern Christians.

* See � Murray�s Encyclopedia of Geography.� See the � Report of the American Board of Missions� for 183.9.

1st. Greeks.�quot; Under the denomination of Greek Church, are included all who hold the opinions of the first seven general councils, and are de -signaled as Melchites, or the orthodox Greek Oriental Church.� * Theynbsp;were thus named, to distinguish them from the Roman Catholic Church,nbsp;after the great schism took place between the Eastern and Westernnbsp;Churches. The most respectable of the clergy are the monks, outnbsp;of whom are chosen the bishops, and the Patriarch, or general headnbsp;of the religion, who, before the late convulsions in Greece, residednbsp;at Constantinople. The secular clergy consist of the papas, or villagepriests, who (as usual among an unenlightened people) exercise annbsp;unbounded influence over the lower orders.� f � The jurisdictionnbsp;of their Patriarchs extends throughout Greece and the Greek islands,nbsp;and the districts of Aleppo, Damascus, Jerusalem, and Grand Cairo.nbsp;The Greek Church ditfers from the Romish, in not exposing the Hostnbsp;publicly to be adored. It administers the sacrament in both kinds,nbsp;and its priests are not forbidden to marry. They hold that thenbsp;scriptures are the rule of faith ; and they have ever maintained theirnbsp;religious independence, in spite of the mockings and insults of theirnbsp;professed enemies, Romanists and Mahometans. The articles of theirnbsp;belief, as retained in their liturgies and catechisms, are those ofnbsp;the Nicene Creed, with the omission of the words � and the Son ��nbsp;� the Holy Ghost, who proceedeth from the Father, [and the Son].�nbsp;Yet,� says Mr. Freemantle, � it is mournful to witness the corruptionsnbsp;and errors, the superstitious rites 'and practices which have crept innbsp;among them, to the great dishonour and disadvantage of the name theynbsp;bear. Their priests are, for the most part, illiterate, and few of themnbsp;are acquainted with the scriptures. Copies of the Bible are scarce (andnbsp;these are chiefly in ancient Greek�quite an unknown tongue to thenbsp;lower orders) ; and this dearth of the word of God has been encouraged,nbsp;till lately, in order to keep the people more in subjection, awe, andnbsp;ignorance. Their numerous fasts, and other outward observances, arenbsp;zecdously attended to, both by priests and people. Such is the casenbsp;with the miracles of the holy fire, which the Greeks, in common with

Sec Mr, Freemantle�s � Letter on the Eastern Churches.' f Sec Murray�s � Encyclopedia,� 1835.

Mr. Hildner (of the Church Missionary Society) writes from Syra, upon Easter day, 1842; � Feasting and firing of guns, both closelynbsp;connected with their services, was going on the whole day. . . In bothnbsp;the services held by me to-day, I found it exceedingly difficult to makenbsp;mvself heard, on account of the firing and noise round about me.� f

In 1839, Dr. King of the American Board of Missions, writes from Athens : � During this year four priests have been appointed by thenbsp;Greek government to preach in different parts of the kingdom, one fornbsp;Athens alone,�one for the surrounding Islands,�one for the Morea,�nbsp;and one for Continental Greece. The preaching of the gospel is in factnbsp;the great thing that is wanting in all the Eastern Churches. There is nonbsp;want of PRIESTS�of these there are multitudes,�but they are unable tonbsp;proclaim the Truth. Their prayers are long, and offered up not onlynbsp;to God, but to angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect, (generally, though, in ancient Greek, and therefore unintelligible to the massnbsp;of the people.) I cannot but hope that some of those who are nownbsp;studying theology here may some day become preachers of righteousness.� J

See � Church Missionary Record,� April, 1843. t See � American Board of Missions Report� for 1841.

2dly. Nestorians.�The Nestorians (or as they are often called, the Syrian Christians) took their name from Nestorius, patriarch of Constantinople, who was condemned at the third council of Ephesus, a.d.nbsp;431. Their doctrines are nearly orthodox.* After the condemnationnbsp;of their founder and head, Nestorianism spread rapidly through Armenia, Mesopotamia, part of Persia, and India, as far as the coasts ofnbsp;Malabar, where the Christians of St. Thomas (as the Syrian Christiansnbsp;are here called) exist to this day. In the seventh century they introduced Christianity into China ; which fact a monument, discovered atnbsp;Singapore, attests. In the tenth century they planted the gospel innbsp;Tartary, and spread themselves through Socotra and Ceylon, and,nbsp;during the rule of the caliphs, to Jerusalem and Cyprus. Many attemptsnbsp;have been made by the Roman Cathohcs to bring them under thenbsp;papal yoke, but without success.� f

The Syrian Church, as regards some of its doctrines, ritual, and forms of worship generally, may form a specimen of what the universal church was in its earliest ages, before corruption had tainted thenbsp;purity of its faith. But amidst all this outward beauty, the life of thenbsp;early church has departed�ignorance generally prevails�the beautifulnbsp;services of the church are in ancient Syriac, which but a few even ofnbsp;the clergy can understand�the Bible is seldom to be found, except in

* � As the churches in America may be interested to know the form and matter of the Creed of the Nestorians, I send below a literal translation of it, with the captionnbsp;prefixed, as it occurs in their Liturgy in the Ancient Syriac, and is always repeated bynbsp;them at the close of their religious exercises, which is at least twice every day.

� � The Creed which was composed by three hundred and eighteen holy Fathers^ who zoere assembled at Nice^ a city of Bythinia^ in the time of Constantine the Pioits. The occasion ofnbsp;their assembling was on account of Arius the infidel accursed.

� � We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, creator of all things which are visible and invisible.

� � And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only-begotten, the first-born of every creature, who was begotten of his Father before all worlds, and was not created;nbsp;the true God of the true God; of the same substance with the Father; by whose handsnbsp;the worlds were made and all things were created ; who for us men, and for our salvation, descended from heaven, and was incemate by the Holy Ghost, and became man,nbsp;and was conceived and born of the Virgin Mary, and suffered and was crucified in thenbsp;days of Pontius Pilate, and died and was buried, and rose on the third day, accordingnbsp;to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of his Father,nbsp;and is again to come to judge the living and the dead.

� � And we believe in one Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, who proceedeth from the Father, the Spirit that giveth life.

� � We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting.� ��Copied from the Report of the American Missionarynbsp;Society f 1841.

the churches, and is there only in manuscript ; and the most common departments of knowledge, from want of hooks and means, are inaccessible. The Roman Catholics are doing their utmost to draw awaynbsp;this ignorant people to the Pope, and have raised a communion ofnbsp;seceders out of every one of the sects of Eastern Christians. Theynbsp;have seized on many of the sacred edifices belonging to the Nestorians ;nbsp;but with the help of the American missionaries they are making anbsp;struggle to gain their rights.*

In 1834, Messrs. Smith and Dwight, of the American Board of Missions, published an account of the Nestorian Christians, from which we will here add a few extracts.

� Their churches are small, dark, vaulted rooms, destitute of pictures or any kind of ornaments, and entered by a door hardly more than twonbsp;feet high, and narrow in proportion : when asked the reason of thisnbsp;extremely small entrance, they replied, � Is it not written, � Strait isnbsp;the gate, and narrow is the way.� �

� The Nestorians observe as many as eight different fasts in the course of the year, some of fifteen and twenty days� continuance.nbsp;Their daily form of worship is very simple, but devoid of spirituality.nbsp;Upon entering a church they first kiss a small wooden cross, whichnbsp;lays on a book for that purpose, and then the hand of the officiatingnbsp;minister. At particular parts of the service (which consists of prayers,nbsp;chants, and responses,) they uncover their heads, cross themselves, andnbsp;kiss the ground. They have nine clerical orders, viz. Catholico andnbsp;Patriarch (by some said to be only different names for the same order),nbsp;Matran, Bishop, Archdeacon, Priest, Deacon, Sub-Deacon, and Reader :nbsp;the two last are mere servants, who sweep the church, light the candles,nbsp;amp;c. Their clergy are all extremely poor, and most of the priests derive their support from labouring like other men; The Nestorians arenbsp;computed to be about 70,000 in number. Many of them affirm theynbsp;derive their name from Nazareth, the town of Mary ; and they callnbsp;themselves ' Nusrany,� which is the very word commonly used innbsp;Arabic to designate all Christians, and is generally regarded the samenbsp;as the term Nazarene in our versions.� f

3dly. Armenians.�� This sect of Eastern Christians are a branch of the Monophysite heresy, whose leaders rejected the council of Chalcedon.nbsp;Their doctrines were first propagated in Armenia, in a.d. 460. Theynbsp;are governed by four patriarchs, who are independent of each other,

* See Letter of Bev. H. Southgate (of the American Episcopal Missionary Society), in � American Annual Report,� August, 1841.

See � Missionary Researches in Armenia, Georgia, Persia,� amp;c. By Eli Smith and H. Dwight. London, 1834, pp. 362�386.

although the precedency is given to the patriarch of Echmiazin. Besides these four, they have other titular patriarchs, residing at Jerusalem, Smyrna, Constantinople, and Angora, who are appointed chiefly tonbsp;satisfy the Turks, and preside over the Armenian merchants and tradersnbsp;at those places. Their confession of faith was translated, in 1768, bynbsp;Paul Ricaut.* They follow very closely the customs of the East. Innbsp;their worship they prostrate their bodies, and kiss the ground threenbsp;times. The most part of their public divine service they perform in thenbsp;morning, before day, not only on festivals, but on ordinary days ofnbsp;work. They have a small library at Smyrna, and a few individualsnbsp;have established a printing-press there. The book most in note amongnbsp;them is one which treats of the hves of holy men, written by a monk,nbsp;which serves them in place of homihes to be read on festival days.nbsp;The Armenians have several monasteries ; those of Jerusalem and

* � I confess that I believe with all my heart in God the. Father, uncreated and not begotten ; and that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost were fromnbsp;all eternity. The Son begotten of the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds only fromnbsp;the Father. I believe in God the Son, uncreated and begotten from eternity. Thenbsp;Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, and equal to the Father ; whatsoever the Fathernbsp;contains the Son contains. I believe in the Holy Ghost, which was from eternity, notnbsp;begotten of the Father but proceeding, three persons but one God. Such as the Son isnbsp;to the Deity, such is the Holy Ghost. I believe in the Holy Trinity, not three Gods,nbsp;but one God ; one in will, in government, and in judgment, creator both of visible andnbsp;invisible. I believe in the Holy Church, in the remission of sins, and the communionnbsp;of saints. I believe that of those three persons, one was begotten of the Father beforenbsp;all eternity, but descended in time from heaven unto Mary, of whom he took blood,nbsp;and was formed in her womb, where the Deity was mixed with the humanity withoutnbsp;spot or blemish. He patiently remained in the womb of Mary nine months, and wasnbsp;afterwards bom as man, with soul, intellect, judgment, and body, having but one bodynbsp;and one countenance ; and of this mixture or union resulted one composition of person.nbsp;God was made man without any change in Himself, bom without human generation.nbsp;His mother remaining a virgin, and as none knows His eternity, so none can conceivenbsp;His being or essence, for as He was Jesus Christ from all eternity, so He is to-day andnbsp;shall be for ever.

� I believe in Jesus Christ, who conversed in this world, and after thirty years was baptised according to his own good will and pleasure ; His Father bearing witness ofnbsp;Him, and said, � This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,� and the Holynbsp;Ghost in form of a dove descended upon him. He was tempted of the devil and overcame ; was preached to the Gentiles ; was troubled in his body, being wearied, enduringnbsp;hunger and thirst ; was crucified with His own will, died corporally, and yet was alivenbsp;as God; was buried, and His Deity was mixed with Him in the grave. His soulnbsp;descended into hell, and was always accompanied with his Deity. He preached to thenbsp;souls in hell, whom after He had released He arose again the third day and appeared tonbsp;his apostles. I believe that our Lord Jesus Christ did with his body ascend into heaven,nbsp;and sits at the right hand of God, and that with the same body, by the determination ofnbsp;his Father, He shall come to judge both the quick and the dead ; and that all shall risenbsp;again : such as have done good shall go into life eternal, and such as have done evil intonbsp;everlasting fire.��Creed of the Armenians.

Echmiazin are the principal. Their three orders of monks profess not to taste meat or wine. They rise at midnight, and continue in prayernbsp;and fasting tiU three in the morning ; during which time they arenbsp;obliged to read once the whole Psalter of David. Yet the Armeniannbsp;monks are so wretchedly ignorant that they are not capable of giving anbsp;satisfactory answer to a stranger, in anything relating to the customsnbsp;and manners of their own nation, and generally reply to his queries bynbsp;begging : indeed they will do nothing without money. In excuse ofnbsp;this, it must be said, that they live under great oppression and exaction,nbsp;both from Turks and Persians. They do not conform to the prevailingnbsp;tenets of the Church of Rome ; but many are the errors which remainnbsp;among them. With reference to the awful imposition of the holy fire,nbsp;they admit that it is no miracle�that it was originally instituted fornbsp;emblematic instruction, and has degenerated into mere superstition, butnbsp;is now necessary for the maintenance of the funds and expenses of thenbsp;church. In Turkey they have not objected to the reception of thenbsp;Bible. There are many Armenians scattered throughout Hindostan ;nbsp;where they have preserved the scriptures pure, says Dr. Buchanan ;nbsp;who adds, � They have as many churches among the Hindoos as ourselves. Wherever they have colonized they have built churches.� *

The character of the Armenian Christians is that of religious quietude and political exclusion. They carry on all the trades and many of thenbsp;manufactures of Turkey and Persia, and have penetrated into Africa andnbsp;the east of Europe. In general they lead peaceable and orderly lives,nbsp;under the government of heads of families.f

4thly. Jacobites, Copts, Abyssinians.�All these various denominations of Christians, though living in different countries, profess the same doctrines : and from the opinions they hold respecting the one nature ofnbsp;Christ, are called Monophysites. Their founders rejected the decreesnbsp;of the council of Chalcedon. The Jacobites are found in Syria in considerable numbers, but they reside chiefly near the Tigris. J

Of the Copts (who are Egyptians) the Rev. H. Tattam thus writes, in 1840, in a letter to the Christian Knowledge Society: �I have justnbsp;returned from visiting the Coptic Christians in every part of Egypt ;nbsp;and during my stay in that country, I entered most of their convents,nbsp;to the inmates of which I had letters of introduction from their patriarch at Alexandria. The Christians of Egypt, alas ! are in a very lownbsp;state indeed, as regards pure Christianity ; the glory of the Copticnbsp;church has long since departed, and there remains only the name or

Murray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography.� � See Mr. Freemantle's � Letter.�

form of religion, without the influence of Christian principles upon the heart and in the life.� Alluding to Mehemet Ali, he says : � Thenbsp;Christian religion is now fully tolerated, and all its professors of everynbsp;denomination receive protection, and enjoy equal privileges with thenbsp;Mahometans. Although learning generally is at a very low ebb amongnbsp;the Copts, yet they recognize the right of the people to the possessionnbsp;of the Scriptures. They are easily accessible, and will receive and read,nbsp;if they are able, any publications that English Christians will presentnbsp;them with.�

The Rev. F. Schlienz writes thus, Oct. 1838, after a visit to Egypt : � If the Copts are at all acquainted with their own formularies, theynbsp;cannot but discover a striking similarity in many points between theirsnbsp;and ours. At present they have only disfigured MSS. in Arabic andnbsp;Coptic, from which they perform divine service, and these in many ofnbsp;their churches contain only parts of their services.� Speaking of thenbsp;attempts of the Romish Church to draw the Eastern Christians over tonbsp;Popery, the same writer remarks : � The Greek, the Copt, the Armenian, and the Nestorian, care little for the mandates of the Romannbsp;pontiff, and unite in their aversion to receive anything from him thatnbsp;might draw them into the net of his numerous emissaries. The Coptsnbsp;possess the Old Testament in Arabic manuscripts, except the secondnbsp;book of Kings ; but it is a wretched translation. They have also thenbsp;New Testament in Arabic, which they use in manuscripts in theirnbsp;churches; and this is a literal translation. They have also Books ofnbsp;Homilies, Evidences of Christianity, Legends of Saints, and a few othernbsp;works in Arabic.*

A full account of the Abyssinian branch of the Coptic Church was given by Messrs. Jowett and Gobat, in the 18th Report of the Churchnbsp;Missionary Society, to which the reader is referred. We may add thenbsp;following brief remarks from the Rev. Mr. Freemantle�s Letter, writtennbsp;in 1840: � The Abyssinian Christians have always rejected the- supremacy of the Pope, and although unions have been formed between thenbsp;two churches, they have been dissolved again and again. The page ofnbsp;history describes the Abyssinians as Having produced so many well-attested miracles to prove the truth of their religion, that the Jesuitnbsp;missionaries who were sent amongst them were reduced to the necessitynbsp;of denying that miracles were any evidence of the authenticity of a creed.nbsp;Tliey were, in fact, over-matched ; they found the Abyssinians had canonized Pontius Pilate and his wife as saints, because the one washed hisnbsp;hands before he condemned to death the Lord of Glory ; and the othernbsp;because she sent this message to her husband�� Have thou nothing to

* See Appendix to Mr. Freemantle�s � Letter on the State of the Eastern Churches.�

do with this just man.� Tlie present condition of this people is truly affecting. The country has lately heen harassed with sedition and intrigue,nbsp;fomented chiefly hy the Popish emissary (supposed to come from France),nbsp;who has gained the confidence of the King of Abyssinia, In the awfulnbsp;decay of principle in the Abyssinian Church, his attempts to throw discredit on the Protestant missionaiies have been but too successful.�

5. Maronites.�The Maronites are a set of Christians inhabiting the steep and rugged heights of Mount Lebanon, in Syria. They havenbsp;been received into communion with the Church of Rome. Their numerous priests are supported by their flocks, or follow some trade : hutnbsp;for this poverty and hard life they are compensated by the great respectnbsp;paid them by their people. They pay a tribute to the Porte, but besidesnbsp;this will not hear the least controul. They are supposed hy some to benbsp;about 150,000 in number.

Mr. Freemantle�s account of them is as follows : � The Maronites� district extends from Tripoli (in Syria) to Nazareth. They have ninenbsp;bishops and one hundred and fifty priests, and their numbers amount tonbsp;100,000. Their patriarch resides at Antioch. Tliey have been subject to Rome since the 12th century, and their present character is thatnbsp;of bitter enmity to Protestants. They exercise a system of bigotry andnbsp;oppression throughout Lebanon.�

The Druses are not Christians. Some writers describe them as a sect of heretical Mahometans ; while others say they are Pagans, holdingnbsp;a plurality in the Godhead, though not worshipping idols. They residenbsp;in the mountains of Lebanon, and other parts of Syria. Since the warnbsp;made upon them by Ibrahim Pacha, they have lost aU faith in theirnbsp;creed, and are applying to the American missionaries for instructionnbsp;and baptism. Several missionaries of the Church of England havenbsp;been sent to learn particulars of their condition : one of them thusnbsp;wrote, in 1841, after a two years� residence among them : � Theynbsp;express their desire to know the truth as in Christ Jesus ; they are conscious of their own ignorance, and being naturally of a teachable andnbsp;docile temperament, they would listen with evident pleasure to anynbsp;exposition of the Christian faith ; and when I had concluded, theynbsp;would pronounce it very good. The predilection they entertain for thenbsp;English is singular, but appears to originate in their religious system.�

Mr. Freemantle thus speaks of them : � They desire to learn the English language, to be taught by English people, and to be united tonbsp;the English Church. A reason may be assigned for this, if, as manynbsp;have supposed, the Druses are descended from the English crusaders,nbsp;who fled for refuge to the mountains, in the disastrous times of thenbsp;holy war. Their jiopulation is about 100,000.�

It will be right to notice the important position which the nation of of Israel holds, in this brief survey of the religions of the countries comprised under the title of our present chapter, viz. Inland Seas.

� In Palestine, or Syria, there is a remnant of the seed of Abraham after the flesh, lingering still round the tombs of their prophets, whomnbsp;their fathers slew, and looking towards the holy city : persecuted bynbsp;Mahometans, and hated by professing Christians, they witness still tonbsp;the truth of God�s word�� I the Lord change not, therefore the sonsnbsp;of Jacob are not consumed.� In 1840, it was computed there werenbsp;about 5000 Jews in Jerusalem or one-fourth of the population of thenbsp;city; and about 12,000 in the Holy Land. The inhabitants of Syrianbsp;are exceedingly few and scattered ; and it is calculated that more thannbsp;one-half of the people reside in Mount Lebanon. Through the laboursnbsp;of the Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews, Church ofnbsp;England principles, and the practice resulting therefrom, have been,nbsp;and still are, presented to the notice of the inhabitants of Jerusalemnbsp;and its surrounding parts.

� Now therefore., what liavamp; I l�rc^ saith the Lord., that my people is toLen atony for nought ? They that rule O'cer them make them to howl., saith the Lord., and my name ccmtinuallynbsp;amp;eery day is blasphemed.�Isa. xlvii. 10.

The � Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge,� and the � Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts,� have sent agents into this field of labour, (more especially into Greece and Syria,)nbsp;within the last three years, in order to ascertain the religious state ofnbsp;the people, and with a view of fixing permanently labourers amongstnbsp;them. The former Society have also materially benefitted the cause ofnbsp;true religion in these parts, by its translations of the scriptures and thenbsp;liturgical services of our church into ancient and modern Greek, Turkish, Armenian, and Arabic ; as well as into Amharic, which is the Ian- .nbsp;guage of a great portion of the people of Abyssinia.

In the year 1815 Malta was fixed on by the Church Missionary Society, as a centre of communication with other countries, and not professedly as a mission to the Roman Catholic Maltese, who by virtue of the tenure whereby these islands w�re annexed to the British Crown, were

to be left in undisturbed possession of their faith. The first object the missionaries pursued who were appointed to Malta, was to travel aboutnbsp;in the countries surrounding the Levant, in order to gain informationnbsp;respecting the Greek and other ancient Christian churches already described as existing in these regions : another object was to establish anbsp;printing-press for printing the scriptures and religious books in Maltese,nbsp;Arabic, and other eastern languages. The Malta mission is now fromnbsp;various causes, given up, and the printing press has passed into privatenbsp;hands. The Church of England has appointed a bishop for Gibraltar,nbsp;in whose jurisdiction Malta is included. There is one protestant churchnbsp;in the island (besides the military chapel). The London and Wesleyannbsp;missionaries have also their respective places of worship, and maintainnbsp;schools in the island. The last report of the Church Missionary Societynbsp;states that its schools at Syra (an island in the Grecian Archipelago) arenbsp;in a hopeful condition. There are five native school-masters and sixnbsp;native mistresses employed. The Greek bishop of Syra is friendly to thenbsp;Society, and some of the clergy under him have sent their children andnbsp;relatives to the schools. The Society formerly had schools at Smyrna,nbsp;but opposition from the native authorities obliged them to be closed.nbsp;The mission here is at present engaged in distributing the scripturesnbsp;and religious books in the Turkish language among the Mahometans ofnbsp;the Ottoman empire. It is stated there is a considerable demand fornbsp;Turkish New Testaments in Asia Minor and Syria, The bishop of thenbsp;United Church of England and Ireland at Jerusalem was appointed innbsp;August 1841, and entered Jerusalem Jan. 21st of the following year.nbsp;The appointment of a bishop for Jerusalem was proposed, and in anbsp;pecuniary point of view, largely aided by the King of Prussia, andnbsp;readily concurred in by Queen Victoria ; and the bishops are to benbsp;be nominated alternately by the Crowns of England and Prussia. Thenbsp;Archbishop of Canterbury made choice of the Rev. M. S. Alexander,nbsp;himself an Israelite by birth,*

The Church Missionary schools at Cairo (especially the female department) are reported to be in a satisfactory state. One European female teacher, five native school-masters, and three native mistressesnbsp;are engaged in superintending them. And the Society is remodellingnbsp;the institution at Cairo for the instruction of Coptic youths intended fornbsp;the ministry of that church. The present patriarch of the Abyssiniannbsp;branch of the Coptic church is a young man who was educated in the

* For further particulars on this subject see �Missionary Register� for 1842, pp. 82�84. And in the Jewish intelligence for February, 1846, particulars respecting thenbsp;lamented death of this excellent prelate.

Church Missionary Society�s schools at Cairo. He was, according to custom, appointed by the patriarch of Alexandria.

The Society�s missionaries were not able to continue in Abyssinia, owing to the distracted state of the country, and have therefore determined on proceeding to the tribes of the Galla nation,�their headquarters being the town of Ankobar in the kingdom of Shoa. Thenbsp;British Government in India have concluded a treaty with the King ofnbsp;Shoa, by which the English are permitted to have free ingress and egressnbsp;into his dominions, which it is hoped may materially benefit the missionarynbsp;cause. The Abyssinia Mission is now become the East Africa Mission,nbsp;and the head-quarters of Dr. Krapf seem likely to be at Zanzibar. Thenbsp;following remarks have been transmitted to the Church Missionary-Society, after his journey down the African coast to Zanzibar Island innbsp;February, 1844 : � The providence of God seems to have opened to usnbsp;more than one entrance into the interior to the heathen of variousnbsp;tribes. The temporal wants of the natives inland, as well as on thenbsp;coast, have effected a mutual intercourse by different roads, which anbsp;missionary might be able to take. Tlie Mahomedan religion, though itnbsp;has made some progress on the coast, has not yet made its encroachments beyond a few miles from the sea-shore, and it seems not to bearnbsp;the bigotted and fanatical character which it does in other parts of thenbsp;world. Tlie continual intercourse with Europeans, and the influence ofnbsp;European politics upon the Imaum of Muscat (to whom this part of thenbsp;coast belongs) prevent the Mahometan population from treating the Christians w�ith contempt. The heathen superstitions and manners on thesenbsp;coasts do not bear the cruel and cannibal character which is manifested,nbsp;for instance, in the Ashantee country and its vicinity. As to the Gallasnbsp;in particular, their country extends from Abyssinia to the fourth degreenbsp;of latitude south of the line. This nation is divided into numberlessnbsp;tribes, and is on the w-hole the same in language, manners, and customsnbsp;in every part of its territory. It is my firm belief that Providence hasnbsp;placed this people in this part of Africa for very important reasons. Ifnbsp;they should be converted to Christianity, they would exercise an influence upon the whole of eastern Africa, which we are now unable to calculate. If the Gallas be not brought within the pale of the Christiannbsp;Church, I fear they will, ere long, fall a prey to the Mahometan religion,nbsp;which has made great progress among them around Abyssinia. Inbsp;should say, the population of the island of Zanzibar (consisting of Arabs,nbsp;natives of India, and slaves from Africa) amounts to at least 100,000,nbsp;of which number about half may reside in the town. The whole islandnbsp;has adopted Mahometan tenets ; but the foreigners (as Banians andnbsp;white people) are not disturbed in their persuasion. The Banians, (na-

tives from India) are the chief traders, and Europeans as well as Americans prefer dealing with them to deahng with the natives and Arabs, in whom they cannot place such confidence. The free Sooaheles arenbsp;the aborigines of the island, and inhabit forty-eight villages : they arenbsp;often treated by the Arabs with great severity. There is an Englishnbsp;consul resident at Zanzibar.� *

It may be mentioned here, that as early as the year 1756, the United Brethren attempted a mission to Cairo, and were well received by thenbsp;Copts of Egypt and their patriarch. They made several fruitless attempts to enter Abyssinia, but were so much oppressed by the Turkishnbsp;authorities, who used them barbarously in order to extort money fromnbsp;them, that in 1783, the mission, which they had prosecuted with muchnbsp;patience and perseverance, was finally abandoned.f

The Americans first entered this field of labour in 1820, when the Board of Missions sent the Rev. Messrs. Parsons and Fisk of the Presbyterian church in America, to Syria and Palestine. They were assistednbsp;at Malta by Dr. Naudi and Mr. Jowett, of the Church Missionary Society, (who had for some years been resident in the Mediterranean, andnbsp;therefore were able to give them much information). About this timenbsp;the Rev. Mr. Williamson, chaplain to the British consulate at Smyrna,nbsp;wrote a letter to the secretary of the American Board of Missions innbsp;Boston, which, as it seems to convey in a few words the principal objectsnbsp;of missionary labour in these countries, some extracts from it may be interesting to the reader. � Rev. and Dear Sir.�Although our friends thenbsp;missionaries have acquainted you with their safe arrival in Smyrna, yet Inbsp;would wish to join in announcing the fact. * * * Within the last fiftynbsp;years hterature is beginning to peep out among the Greeks from hernbsp;hiding-places in Turkey. Some of the best-informed are acquainted withnbsp;the Reformation, and Luther and those other Reformers who did notnbsp;sweep away episcopal superintendence, are respected by a few of thenbsp;Greeks, though the majority will have nothing to do with Reformation,nbsp;and know nothing about it.. Besides the Christians all round the shores ofnbsp;the Mediterranean Sea, those of Egypt, Abyssinia, Arabia, Syria, Persia,nbsp;Asia Minor, Russia and Turkey in Europe, of whatever denominationnbsp;they may be, all have their own episcopal magistrates in ecclesiasticalnbsp;affairs, and the violation of the laws made by each respective party, isnbsp;considered as most heinous by these ignorant people. * * * * Anbsp;missionary (with the assistance of the leading men and priests of thenbsp;Greeks) may be able to distribute many copies of the everlasting Word

See Dr. Krapf�s � Journal,� published in the � Church Missionary Record,� 1844. See Brown�s � History of Missions,� vol. i. p. S66.

in languages intelligible to the people,�a blessing of which these regions have been deprived for some hundreds of years.� * � The sale and distribution of the Holy Scriptures has been hitherto the onlynbsp;missionary operation carried on in this country. Two other important parts of missionary labour remain to be entered upon. The firstnbsp;is education ; the other, a translation of good religious books andnbsp;tracts. The extensive fields of education are not, to foreign Protestantnbsp;missionaries, so easily and completely accessible (in this country) as thenbsp;rich and most abundant streams of a fount of types, which would erenbsp;long, silently water every portion of the field sowed with the Word ofnbsp;God, and would, with the divine blessing, render luxuriant the Christian harvest.� f

The reader will bear in mind that the foregoing letter was written in 1820, and subsequent events have proved that his anticipations of goodnbsp;to be effected, have not been fully realized, and that as yet but little advance has been made in breaking down the insurmountable barriers ofnbsp;Mahometanism and Popery, or in re-animating the dead Christian communities in the East. Nevertheless the American missionaries have notnbsp;been idle, even amongst the greatest opposition of the most trying nature. Their schools in many parts have been closed, and the peoplenbsp;required by their superiors not to listen to the preached word. J Yet

* This has been effected and carried on by the American missionaries and others to a considerable extent (with the help of the British and Foreign Bible Society). Thenbsp;scriptures, or parts of them, have been dispersed through these countries in the followingnbsp;languages:�

Ancient Greek. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;For students and the Greek churches.

� Note Those marked thus * are only the New Testament, the rest are the entire Bible. See � American Board of Missions,� Annual Report for 1820, p. 281.

still the statistical table at the close of this chapter will shew there are many hundreds of children now under Christian instruction. In Cyprusnbsp;these missionaries have commenced the first girl�s school ever known innbsp;that island.

The following is a list of some of the religious works translated and printed by the American missionaries, now in the course of distribution :nbsp;Wilberforce�s Practical View ; Keith�s Evidences of Prophecy ; Baxter�snbsp;Saint�s Rest ; Butler�s Analogy ; Watts�s Catechisms ; � Scripture Stories,� (translated by Mrs. Benjamin); Child�s Book of the Soul; Sixteen short Sermons ; Gurney on the Sabbath : besides numerous shortnbsp;tracts and extracts from the writings of the early Christian Fathers.nbsp;The American mission to the Mahometans of Persia, at Tebriz (or Ta-breez) was given up early in 1843. Mr. Merrick thus writes before quitting Tebriz, of the indefatigable efforts the Roman Catholics were makingnbsp;there�� The Papists are strengthening their stakes in this country.nbsp;Three more priests, (� Lazarists,�) have arrived here ; one is to reinforcenbsp;the mission at Ispahan, another for Ooroomiah, and a third for Tebriz.nbsp;At this last-named town, the � prefect apostolic� has a flourishing school.nbsp;The French, Armenian, Persian and Russian languages are taught ; andnbsp;at Ispahan, French, Persian, and Armenian, I believe.� *

Of the work now carrying on by the American Episcopal Missionary Society, the Rev. Mr. Southgate thus writes. August 1841 ; � In thenbsp;eastern communions a missionary recognizes the great outlines of thenbsp;Primitive Church ; and though he beholds the ancient form encumberednbsp;with corrupt and unauthorized appendages, he discovers beneath themnbsp;the fundamentals of Christian truth ; he does not therefore attempt tonbsp;subvert the churches, but to restore them to their simplicity and purity.nbsp;Some of the results already gained from this mission, are, the approbation of my plans�the supplying the schools with books�the circulationnbsp;of the Holy Scriptures�and much additional information required withnbsp;regard to the Syrian Church.

t Although there appears to be no regularly organized Schools at any of these Stations (excepting at Jerusalem), yet the Jews of these places, both young and old, are frequently in the habit ofnbsp;coming to the Missionaries (or their wives), to receive instruction in reading the Scriptures.

Taktary is the name given in Europe to that immense region extending almost entirely across Asia from the Caspian Sea to the Eastern Ocean ;nbsp;but the name is only partially recognized within these limits. Althoughnbsp;in so vast region much diversity of every kind must necessarily exist,nbsp;the general similarity is striking. Many parts of it are bordered andnbsp;even pervaded by chains of mountains ; and large cities, cultivatednbsp;spots, and fixed societies here and there occur. It contains also sandynbsp;deserts of considerable extent ; still the predominant characteristic isnbsp;that of immense plains, or steppes, covered with herbage more or lessnbsp;abundant, and occupied by wandering and pastoral tribes, whose camps.

like moving cities, pass continually to and fro over its surface. The extensive chain of the Altai mountains separate the whole of Mongolia,nbsp;or Eastern Tartary, from Siberia, and another long chain divides it fromnbsp;Thibet. There is also a transverse range of mountains, called thenbsp;Beloor or Bolor mountains, connecting the western extremities of thesenbsp;two boundary chains together, of a pecuharly lofty and rugged character,nbsp;and affording only two narrow and difficult passes by which to penetratenbsp;into Eastern Tartary, or Mong�lia. A considerable number of rivers,nbsp;descending from these high mountain ranges, traverse the great uplandnbsp;plain of Independent Tartary, but unable, across so many barriers, tonbsp;reach any of the surrounding oceans, they expand into large interiornbsp;salt lakes, two of which, the Caspian and Aral, are entitled, by theirnbsp;magnitude, to the appellation of seas. The irrigation produced bynbsp;these rivers breaks the continuity of the desert, and on their banks arenbsp;situated the most fertile and populous tracts, and the most powerful statesnbsp;of Western Tartary.

Bokhara, or, (as formerly called, Bucharia,) is an extensive table land, very imperfectly explored, but, according to Humboldt, is muchnbsp;more fertile than the rest of Tartary ;�the cotton, the vine, and the mulberry there come to maturity, and are in many parts cultivated. Thisnbsp;comer of Asia has valuable mines of ruby, lapis lazuli, and other precious stones. The other more northerly table-land of Tartary, commonlynbsp;called Mongolia, is much more bleak and ungenial than Bokhara andnbsp;Western Tartary ; it yields in its best tracts only pasturage, and includesnbsp;large expanses of sandy and saline deserts.*

In respect to its natural history, the horse is the wealth and strength of Tartary ; those, however, for which this region is so famous, displaynbsp;neither the elegance, the airy lightness, nor the excessive swiftness ofnbsp;the Arabian steed,�they are of great weight, with long bodies and largenbsp;limbs, and their merit consists in the power they possess of makingnbsp;imiriense journeys without pause or fatigue, and by this quality theynbsp;wear out, at the long run, their swifter adversaries. They will performnbsp;continued journeys of seventy or eighty miles a-day without injurv.nbsp;They are used too, not only as instruments of war or plunder, but as annbsp;article of food�horse-flesh being esteemed by all the Tartar races anbsp;great delicacy. The other animals of Tartary are chiefly borrowed fromnbsp;the adjoining districts. They have the yak, the goat, and the muskrat of Thibet ; and in the north a few of the fur-bearing animals ofnbsp;Siberia, but neither in such perfection as in their proper districts.

which we would more particularly direct the attention of our readers, as having heen, of all this widely-extended tract, almost the only spotnbsp;that has been made the scene of missionary labour. It is situated between the Caspian and Black Seas, and appears to hold out advantagesnbsp;for the missionary :�1st. its having a more genial climate, and beingnbsp;more fruitful and capable of cultivation than many parts of Tartary ;nbsp;2dly, its being a thoroughfare between the more populous countries ofnbsp;Russia, Turkey, and Persia ; and, lastly, its being under the controulnbsp;and civil jurisdiction of a Christian power ; for Russia, in the time ofnbsp;the Emperor Alexander, when the missionaries of Scotland and Moravianbsp;first settled in Russian Tartary, appears to have been, in a political pointnbsp;of view, friendly to missionary exertions.

We win now give a very brief description of the districts of Orenburgh and Astrachan, at the head of the Caspian Sea ; also of the region ofnbsp;Mount Caucasus, Circassia, and Georgia. According to the best authorities, the province of Orenburgh forms the link between European andnbsp;Asiatic Russia. Tartars still compose its chief population, but many ofnbsp;them have been trained to regular and industrious habits by the Russians, in their mines and other works. The country is capable of everynbsp;kind of culture, but it is mostly covered with rich pastures. The easternnbsp;frontier is formed by the Ural Mountains, and possesses many rich andnbsp;valuable mines. A line of military posts on the river Ural here securesnbsp;Russia from the inroads of the Kirghises and Calmucs, who traverse thenbsp;vast wilds of this part of Asia. The Tartars bring annually to thenbsp;market at Orenburgh about 10,000 horses, and from 40,000 to 60,000nbsp;sheep ; the latter are purchased chiefly for the sake of the tallow.nbsp;Hence also the numerous caravans depart for Khiva, Bokhara, Khojedn,nbsp;and other cities in the heart of Asia. The environs of Astrachan arenbsp;flat and marshy, and the whole province is an extensive plain, in manynbsp;places almost desert, but in others capable of supporting a considerablenbsp;pastoral population, which is almost exclusively composed of the Tartarnbsp;race, such as the Nogays, Calmucks, and Cossacks of the Don. Thenbsp;region of the Caucasus is watered by two rapid streams, the Cubannbsp;and the Terek, one falling into the Black Sea, and the other into thenbsp;Caspian. On these rivers the Russians keep up a line of strong forts,nbsp;to protect them against the plundering Tartars ; and there are severalnbsp;towns of Russian origin, the chief of which, are Georgivesk and Mosdok.nbsp;Sarepta and Karass, formerly missionary stations, were situated in thisnbsp;district. Below Circassia rise the mighty precipices of Caucasus, whosenbsp;highest ranges are covered with perpetual snow, while the lower declivities contain numerous well-watered vailles, which though not capablenbsp;of high cultivation, yield millet and maize in considerable quantity.

Fine honey, silk, and wine, are also among the productions which some parts of this wild region alfords.

To the south of the lofty range of the Caucasian mountains is Georgia, a region profusely gifted both with richness and beauty. It is fertilisednbsp;by numberless mountain-streams, and is clothed with magnificent forestsnbsp;of beech, ash, chesnut, oak, and pine ; while the ground is covered withnbsp;vines growing wild in vast profusion. In this province are Teflis andnbsp;Shusha, each having been at different times missionary stations. Thisnbsp;country has been the seat of continual wars and commotions ; and was,nbsp;about two centuries ago, wrested from Persia by Russia. In consequencenbsp;of war and other causes, its population is considerably reduced, and doesnbsp;not now much exceed 300,000.

Siberia next claims our notice, as having had for many years a small missionary settlement situated upon its confines ; namely Sehnginsk,nbsp;south-east of Lake Baikal. As the southern countries of Asia containnbsp;the most populous regions in the world, and the more central countriesnbsp;the widest range of pastoral table-land, so the most northern regions ofnbsp;Asia present an almost unbounded expanse of frozen desert. Some ofnbsp;the plains, indeed, of the southern border of Siberia are covered withnbsp;deep pastures ; but as you proceed to the northern boundaries of thenbsp;bleak shores of the Frozen Ocean, human fife, with the means of supporting it, become more and more deficient. Here, however, that beneficent contrivance, which presides over the whole of the works of God,nbsp;has provided for the support of a profusion of animals. The severity ofnbsp;the cold, which would otherwise be fatal to many of them, is guardednbsp;against, in some by a thick coat of fat and other unctuous substancesnbsp;beneath their skins ; in others by thick furs, much richer and softernbsp;than those which clothe the tenants of the more favoured and southerlynbsp;regions. Of these the principal are the sable and ermine, the black andnbsp;red and grey fox ; also the bear and wolf, though these last are not sonbsp;profitable an article of trade. The tribute which the inhabitants ofnbsp;these regions pay to Russia is collected in furs, which are annuallynbsp;brought from the utmost limits of Siberia and Kamtschatka down thenbsp;river Lena, as far south as Lake Baikal. The town of Yakoutsk, eightnbsp;hundred miles from the mouth of the Lena, is the great market at whichnbsp;the furs and other precious products of these desolate countries arenbsp;collected by the agents of the Russian government. The numerous andnbsp;extensive rivers of Siberia abound in fish, which forms a principal partnbsp;of the food of the scanty wandering tribes. All the western districts ofnbsp;Asiatic Russia which border on the Ural mountains contain valuablenbsp;mines of gold, silver, and copper, besides many of the precious stonesnbsp;which are here found in abundance.

Selinginsk, which, for twenty years, was a station of the London Missionary Society, for the Tartars of the Buriat-Mongolian race, is anbsp;small town on the frontiers of Siberia and Chinese Tartary, south-eastnbsp;of Lake Baikal, and was built by the Russians to facilitate their routenbsp;up the river Sehnga as far as Kiachta on the Chinese frontier, whithernbsp;the subjects of China brought their objects of commerce, to exchangenbsp;for Russian commodities, as the Russians were not allowed to enter thenbsp;dominions of the Emperor of China for the purposes of trade. Thenbsp;commercial line of route, from Petersburg and Moscow to Irkutsk andnbsp;lake Baikal, is marked on the Protestant Missionary Map, and is thenbsp;only accessible road through Siberia. All the towns of Siberia are chieflynbsp;of Russian origin, and are built to facilitate trade, and the purposes ofnbsp;the government in collecting the tribute, amp;c., as the native inhabitantsnbsp;of these thinly inhabited and desolate regions greatly prefer living anbsp;rude and wandering life in tents or moveable huts.*

With regard to the vegetation of some of these regions, we extract the following remarks from a late work � On the Geography of Plants,�nbsp;by J. Barton, published in 1827 :�� If from the south of Russia wenbsp;travel eastward into Asia, the appearance of the country will be found tonbsp;undergo a very remarkable change. Approaching the northern shore ofnbsp;the Black Sea, the soil becomes sandy, intermixed in places with seashells, impregnated with salt, and abounding in lakes of salt water.nbsp;Such is the aspect of the celebrated steppes of Asiatic Russia. Thenbsp;presence of salt, in any considerable quantity, is fatal to corn and mostnbsp;other vegetables ; there are, however, certain plants to which it appearsnbsp;indispensable, and which have been, for that reason, called saline plants.nbsp;From the ashes of these saline plants soda is obtained, a substancenbsp;largely consumed in the manufacture of glass and soap. The region ofnbsp;Mount Caucasus is interesting on account of its great natural beauties.nbsp;In the fruitful vaUies to the south of these lofty mountains, and on thenbsp;banks of the river Oxus, to the east of the Caspian Sea, are foundnbsp;whole thickets of lemon, pomegranate, pear, and cherry-trees. Everynbsp;species of fruit cultivated in our gardens grows there apparently wild ;nbsp;but whether they are truly natives of the soil, or the remains of verynbsp;ancient gardens, is the more difficult to determine, as this is just thenbsp;spot which appears to have been first peopled by the descendants ofnbsp;Noah.�

The Spanish and horse-chesnut are found in the countries south of Independent Tartary, and the cotton-plant is cultivated here in somenbsp;places. The southern and milder tracts yield occasionally wheat, barley,

and millet, while the northern districts yield scarcely any grain, except oats. On the great chain of mountains separating Tartary from Siberia,nbsp;are found some valuable and pecuUar products, among which is thenbsp;rhubarb, so useful as a medicine.*

It has been already intimated that the great striking characteristic in the habits and manners of all the Tartar people is that of a wanderingnbsp;or roving nature, preferring to live in tents to settling in more fixednbsp;habitations, subsisting on their flocks and herds, and, though fond ofnbsp;war and plunder, displaying in their domestic life much simplicity andnbsp;amiability of character.

There are two leading races among the various tribes inhabiting this immense region. The Mongols, or Mongolian race of Tartars, and thenbsp;Turks. The first have complexions of a dark yellow tint, broad, square,nbsp;flat faces, with thick lips, and small eyes inclining downwards towardsnbsp;the nose ; and they have a scanty portion of black hair : of this divisionnbsp;the Calmucks, the Eluths, and Buriats formed a part. The Turks, ornbsp;Turcomans, are much handsomer people, with a rich profusion of hair,nbsp;broad foreheads, and clear ruddy complexions. The Circassian females

are famed for their great beauty, fine forms, and delicate complexion. Living in the high mountain-vallies of Caucasus, with a northern exposure, the Circassians do not suffer fi-om that intense heat of the sunnbsp;which produces generally the dark tints of middle and southern Asia.nbsp;The daughters of all above the rank of slaves are exempted from degrading or oppressive labour, and merely occupy themselves in sewing,nbsp;embroidery, or the plaiting of straw. The face is carefully shaded fromnbsp;the sun, their feet are protected by a kind of wooden shoe, and theirnbsp;hands by the use of gloves ; and their food consists chiefly pf milk andnbsp;pastry. But their condition is a sad one ; for the parents invariablynbsp;sell their daughters to the highest bidder. Georgia, and still more Circassia, has been distinguished for the athletic strength of its men, andnbsp;the beauty of its females, in consequence of which qualities they havenbsp;been in great request as domestic slaves over all the Turkish empire.

The Tartars do not, like the shepherds of a civilized country, lead their flocks through remote and sequestered vailles, and spend theirnbsp;time in peaceful seclusion. They move from place to place, usually innbsp;large bodies, united for some purpose either of war or plunder. Theirnbsp;government has a great tendency to despotism, which is increased bynbsp;the superstition incident to a barbarous people, whose creeds are accommodated to a system of absolute power. Under the character of Mahometan mollahs, or Buddhist lamas, many of the princes of Asia preachnbsp;and rule. In Bokhara, the former sovereign raised himself from a lownbsp;rank to that high station solely by his eminence as a mollah, or Mahometan doctor, and by his rigid observance of the austerities enjoined innbsp;that religion. In those parts of Tartary where Mahometanism prevails,nbsp;the Koran is enforced, not only as a sacred but as a civil code ; accordingnbsp;to its rules, justice is administered and the revenue collected, and,nbsp;conformably to its precepts, a tenth part of the revenue is bestowednbsp;in alms.

Nearly the whole of the territory of Mount Caucasus, and the country north and west of the Caspian Sea, owns the sovereignty of Russia.nbsp;On the borders of Persia, where the Russians must court the natives asnbsp;their allies against that power, they are obliged to allow the Tartars thenbsp;unrestrained exercise of their national propensities. Again, the vastnbsp;plains on every side of Astrachan are continually traversed by Calmucks,nbsp;Nogays, Kubans, and other Tartar tribes, who, though they would benbsp;brought to yield an enforced homage, could never brook a daily interference in their internal concerns ; these are administered by theirnbsp;khans, or rulers, who collect and transmit such scanty tribute as can benbsp;drawn from the flocks and herds of their humble vassals. It is only innbsp;the more northern provinces of Oufa and Orenberg, where cities, with

a civilized population and extensive mining establishments, have been formed, that Russia has been able to mould the people into that uniformnbsp;subjection which prevails in other parts of her European and Asiaticnbsp;territory.

In the mountainous regions of Circassia and Caucassus, the distinctions of birth and rank are observed with all the strictness of highland pride.nbsp;Under the prince are the nobles, who exercise, in their turn, an almostnbsp;absolute sway over their vassals,�these consist of two kinds�the bondsmen, who cultivate the soil, and the armed retainers who attend the noblesnbsp;to the field, either for war or for prey. The life led by the nobles is onenbsp;constant round of war and feasting, of hunting and jollity. They manifest especial pride and care respecting their horses, and on their armournbsp;also no cost is spared. This consists of a pistol and musket, a coat ofnbsp;mail, often shot proof, a helmet of polished steel, and a bow and quiver,nbsp;the latter, in some instances, ornamented with pearls and preciousnbsp;stones. On state occasions they are attired in the most splendid robes,nbsp;while their food and furniture are always of the most plain and homelynbsp;description. Their drink consists of a fermented liquor called koumiss,nbsp;made from mares� milk, of which they are very fond ; it supplies thenbsp;place of wine, which, by the Koran, they are strictly forbidden to touch,

AU Tartar tribes are almost universally addicted to habits of plunder �that national plunder on a great scale which they consider rathernbsp;a boast than a disgrace, and which is generally familiar to rude and half-barbarous nations living in the vicinity of more opulent neighbours. Ifnbsp;a stranger enters their country unprotected he is sure to be enslaved ;nbsp;but if under the guardianship of one of their cliiefs, he meets with unbounded hospitality. The valour of the Circassians and the rapidnbsp;movements of the fight cavalry, of which its warlike bands are composed,nbsp;have set at defiance every effort made by Russia to reduce this peoplenbsp;to subjection ; it therefore can only hold military occupation of thenbsp;leading positions by chains of forts and such means ; but has beennbsp;hitherto unable to withhold from the natives their rude and proud independence.

The kingdoms of Khiva and Bokhara form a kind of oases in the midst of the vast deserts of Turcomania, which is the name often givennbsp;to this whole region as far as the Caspian and the Aral. The �susnbsp;fertilizes Bokhara which extends about 200 miles along that river.nbsp;Silkworms here are copiously reared, and large crops of rice are raised.nbsp;A sheep of this country is furnished with a jet black curly wool, highlynbsp;prized in Persia ; here is also found the goat which yields the fine silkynbsp;wool used in Cashmere shawls. Camels are chiefly employed in Bokharanbsp;for conveying merchandize. A large quantity of gold is found on the banks

of the Oxus. Bokhara carries on a considerable inland trade with India, Persia, and above all with Russia : but this country has hitherto beennbsp;very httle visited by Europeans.

It is very difamp;cult to ascertain correctly the amount of population scattered through the vast regions of Tartary ; but the Calmucs arenbsp;much the most numerous of all the tribes. Murray�s Encyclopedianbsp;of Geography,� (from which most of this brief account of the countrynbsp;has been collected) fixes it at about 6,000,000 for the whole of Independent Tartary, including Bokhara ; and it is calculated that thenbsp;entire population of Tartary, including Mongolia and Mandshuria maynbsp;be about 20,000,000 (which comes short, by some millions, of thenbsp;population of the British Isles.) The immense region of Siberia contains five millions of square miles, and it is computed rather morenbsp;than one million of inhabitants, which gives only one person to everynbsp;five square miles. This very scanty population consists of two verynbsp;distinct portions, the foreign rulers, and the native tribes. Thenbsp;Russian inhabitants are composed of the unfortunate exiles, who arenbsp;banished to those desolate wilds for some real or fancied offence againstnbsp;the State : the convicts at work in the mines, which belong to thenbsp;Government, and the officers stationed at the different Russian townsnbsp;throughout Siberia to collect the furs and skins, as tribute or tax to thenbsp;emperor. There are likewise the dignitaries of the church and inferiornbsp;clergy connected with the establishment. Each of the four large provincesnbsp;into which this portion of the Russian empire is divided, viz. Tobolsk,nbsp;Tomsk, Irkutsk, and Okhotsk, has its archbishop and patriarchs, whonbsp;reside entirely in the towns. Of the native Siberian races, those whichnbsp;occupy the whole of the southern frontier are of Tartar origin, and thatnbsp;people indeed, until their conquest by the Russians in the early part ofnbsp;the seventeenth century, hold the supreme sway in Siberia. The peoplenbsp;inhabiting the southern and eastern shores of Lake Baikal are the Buriats, a division of the Mongohans. The sway of Russia has been so farnbsp;salutary with respect to these people, that it has suppressed that systemnbsp;of perpetual war and plunder which was formerly carried on by them,nbsp;and which stiU prevails in all the countries of independent Tartary.nbsp;The Samoyedes and Tungusi races inhabit the northern coasts, andnbsp;these are unlike the Tartars both in their persons and habits. Theynbsp;possess no herds but those of reindeer, and their sole employment isnbsp;hunting and fishing along the frozen plains and bleak shores of the greatnbsp;Siberian rivers. They lead a wandering life, and their huts are composednbsp;of upright poles placed together in a circle and surmounted with a conical roof formed of the bark of the birch tree. Their dress is composednbsp;chiefly of the skins of the animals they take in hunting. The dress of

the Tartars around the Caspian and Black Seas is more costly ; it consists of a cotton shirt and trowsers, a silken woollen Tunic, tied with a girdle, and over this a gown of broad cloth or felt ; the national headnbsp;dress is a large white turban, drawn in general over a pointed cap.nbsp;Boots are worn at all times both by rich and poor, men and women.nbsp;Every man has a knife hanging from his girdle. The women wear thenbsp;same garments nearly as the men, but throw a robe of silk or cottonnbsp;over all in addition ; they are very fond of gold and silver ornaments,nbsp;and plait their hair into long tails hanging down on their shoulders. Innbsp;Mongoha, sheep-skins dressed in a peculiar manner with the hair inwards are considered the most comfortable protection against the coldness of the chmate.

Two false religions divide Tartary, and are professed with zeal through different portions. All its eastern regions acknowledge the supremacynbsp;of the Grand Lama, and hold the Shaman doctrines which is a modification of Buddhism ; while, ever since the eighth century when the countries of western and independent Tartary were conquered by the armsnbsp;and instructed by the preaching of the caliphs, these nations have remained devoted to the Mussulman creed. Under the Buddhist systemnbsp;of religion the various httle tribes of eastern Asia have minor lamas whonbsp;hold a mixed temporal and spiritual jurisdiction over the people, and innbsp;Tartary this form of idolatrv seems combined with magic and sorcery.

and many similar modes of terrifying and deluding the ignorant wanderers of the Desert.*

� Burchan � is the general name of the Calmuc idols, (according to the account of the Rev. Mr. Rahm, of the London Missionary Society,nbsp;who visited these people in 1821, 22, and 23), and most of their godsnbsp;(whether men or idols) are supposed to have heen spiritual heings, whonbsp;after passing through aR the different degrees of transmigration, have atnbsp;last raised themselves to the dignity of the godhead, by great deeds andnbsp;extreme sufferings. According to the accounts published in 1821 by thenbsp;Scottish missionaries settled near Astrachan, the inhabitants of the Tartar villages in this region are Mahometans, and there are also manynbsp;Persians professing the same faith, residing in this country, for thenbsp;purpose of carrying on the trade with eastern Europe.

� That race of Mongolian Tartars called Buriats, inhabiting the southern shores of Lake Baikal as far as the Chinese frontier, derivenbsp;their religion from Thibet, and worship the Dalai Lama (or Grand Lama)nbsp;whom they believe to be a heavenly, if not a divine being ; but likenbsp;heathens, in all countries, they have numerous other objects of religiousnbsp;homage. Their worship is associated with no sanguinary rites, butnbsp;abounds with external observances (many of them very absurd) whichnbsp;the people themselves acknowledge to be burdensome and disagreeable,nbsp;but these ceremonies are considered on this account to be the morenbsp;meritorious. A portion of the people still profess Shamanism, which isnbsp;supposed to be the most ancient religion of the country, and consistsnbsp;chiefly in the worship of fire and in reliance on amulets, or charms. Itnbsp;also differs from Lamaism, inasmuch as it derives no support from annbsp;order of priests, from books, or from any regular outward observances.nbsp;Many of the Lamaists, especially the priests, are very zealous, and havenbsp;succeeded in making many converts from Shamanism.� f

* Murray�s � Encyclopedia,� p. 10S8. t See � Missionary Chronicle� for .Inly, 1833, p. 328.

� So shall my word be that proceedelh out of my month, it shall not return unto me void.quot; Isaiah Iv. II.

It was in 1765 that a little company of five United Brethren from Hemhutt in Silesia, were appointed to undertake a mission among thenbsp;wandering Tartar tribes in Asiatic Russia, and settled at Sarepta, not farnbsp;from Georgeisk, one of the chief Russian towns between the Black andnbsp;Caspian Seas, on the high road from Petersburg to Persia by Astrachan.nbsp;They succeeded in ransoming some of the Tartars from slavery, andnbsp;were most persevering in preaching the Gospel to all whose attentionnbsp;they could gain, and even conformed in some respects to the Tartarnbsp;mode of life, in the hope of thereby leading them to embrace the truthsnbsp;they taught them ; they also translated the Gospels and several tractsnbsp;into the Calmuc, but very little success attended their labours until afternbsp;the year 1815, when a small flock of Calmuc Tartars came out fromnbsp;among their heathen countrymen, and joined the Brethren�s congregation at Sarepta. In 1823 their whole congregation had increased tonbsp;about 300 souls, when their little settlement was nearly destroyed by anbsp;fire breaking out and lasting many days, which threw them into greatnbsp;distress. About this time also they had applied to the Russian Government for leave to baptize their converts, twenty-two in number, butnbsp;their request was refused, on the ground of an old existing law, � that

no heathen, under Russian sway, shall be converted to Christianity and baptized but by the Russian Greek clergy,� (which implies the Russiannbsp;clergy of the Greek Church form of religion). � The emperor himselfnbsp;has not the power to alter any part of the ecclesiastical laws, and thusnbsp;with all goodwill towards the Brethren and their missions, he could notnbsp;interfere.� * But particular leave was given them by the emperornbsp;(Alexander) to preach and distribute the Holy Scriptures among thenbsp;Calmucs ; and his prime minister. Prince Galitzin, transmitted six lettersnbsp;to the Calmuc princes to direct them to sulfer this to be done withoutnbsp;interruption. At this point of our description of missionary efforts innbsp;Tartary and Russia, it may be wfell to mention, that very great andnbsp;valuable assistance was for many years rendered both to the Scotch,nbsp;London, and Moravian Missionary Societies by the Russian Bible Society, whose interests the Emperor Alexander and the pious Prince Galitzin warmly and steadily promoted ; as we shall see by referring to thenbsp;�Missionary Registers� from 1816 to 1825. It was the Russian Biblenbsp;Society which was at the expense of publishing the Scriptures in Modem Russ, and in Mongolian, and a portion of them in Turkish Tartar, after they had been translated into these languages by the indefatigable agents and missionaries of these several Societies ; and it wasnbsp;chiefly through the instrumentality of the Bible Society at St. Peters-burgh that the London Missionary Society undertook its mission tonbsp;Sehnginsk, as we shall hereafter shew.

The � Scottish� (or � Edinburgh�) Missionary Society commenced exertions at Harass, in Asiatic Russia, in 1802, with a view to introducenbsp;the gospel among the Tartars. Upon their urgent solicitations theynbsp;obtained from the Russian government a grant of land consisting ofnbsp;14,000 acres, with certain immunities attached ; and they seem to havenbsp;obtained greater privileges than their missionary brethren, the Moravians ; for liberty was given to their converts to � embrace the religion ofnbsp;the colony, and become members of it.� They had also another permission granted them, that of giving passports to the members of theirnbsp;congregations to settle in other parts of the Russian empire ; and itnbsp;was probably the consequence of these privileges, that the Scotchnbsp;colony or missionary settlement at Harass continued in existence for anbsp;longer period than any other missionary establishment in Tartary.nbsp;Native youths, slaves to the Circassians and Cuban Tartars, were earlynbsp;redeemed by the Scotch missionaries, and placed in schools where theynbsp;acquired the Turkish and English languages, the principles of Chris-

tianity, and several useful arts. In 1805, a printing-press was sent out to Karass, and, through the indefatigable labours of this colony, thenbsp;New Testament in Turkish was soon printed and circulated, as well asnbsp;tracts in the Tartar language. In 1814, they extended their missionarynbsp;efforts to Astrachan and Orenberg, and, at the former place, anothernbsp;printing-press was established, which printed the Tartar New Testament and other books, which were carried into Persia by the numerousnbsp;merchants trading from that country with Russia. One of their Tartarnbsp;converts, named John Abercrombie, was for many years printer to thenbsp;London Missionary Society�s settlement at Selinginsk. In the coursenbsp;of 1817, the Edinburgh Missionary Society issued 4000 tracts and 5000nbsp;copies of the Tartar New Testament ; � these found their way, bynbsp;means of Mahometan merchants and pilgrims, to Bagdat, Persia,nbsp;Bucharia (or Bokhara), and even to China. Brahmins and Jews alsonbsp;visit Astrachan (for purposes of trade) and become bearers of thesenbsp;treasures.� * A Tartar prince of the Crimea, called � the Sultannbsp;Katagherry,� seems to have been the first fruits of missionary labournbsp;among the Tartars of this part of Asia. � Walter Buchanan,� a Circassian, was the next ; he faithfully served the Edinburgh Society, fornbsp;many years, at Orenburgh, in Russian Tartary.

In 1822, the colony of the Scotch Missionary Society was joined by several German missionaries sent out by the Basle Institution,�somenbsp;of whom settled in Tartary, while some proceeded to Teflis andnbsp;Shusha, in Georgia, to labour among the Armenian Christians in thatnbsp;province, where they remained till 1838.

In 1823, the first-fruits of missionary exertions among the Persians at Astrachan was granted to the Edinburgh Society. Mirza Mahometnbsp;Ali was a young man, the son of a Mahometan judge, living at Astrachan, and was introduced to the missionaries there, as qualified for anbsp;teacher of the Turkish, Persian, and Arabic languages. He was therebynbsp;led to frequent discussions on the subject of religion, in consequence ofnbsp;which his faith in the Mahometan superstition became shaken, and afternbsp;a short time, and against the urgent and oft-repeated solicitations ofnbsp;his father and friends, he cordially embraced Christianity ; and whennbsp;the Greek archbishop of Astrachan proposed that he should be admittednbsp;into that communion by baptism, he wrote a petition to the Emperornbsp;Alexander, through Prince Galitzin, his minister of religion, sohcitingnbsp;that he might be allowed to receive Christian baptism from those whonbsp;had been the instruments of his conversion. This request was instantly

granted, and the right of the Scottish missionaries to baptize their converts was confirmed. Accordingly Mahomed Ali was admitted a member of Christ�s church, by the Scotch missionaries, Messrs. Glin, MacPherson,nbsp;and Ross, in the presence of Greeks and Turks, Persians and Frenchmen, Britons, Germans, and the dwellers in Armenia ; the service beingnbsp;read in English, Turkish, and Persian, so that all could understand s'�menbsp;part of its meaning.* Several Mahometans appeared anxious tonbsp;follow his example, but they seem not to have been fully convinced ofnbsp;the truth. Mahomet Ali remained firm, but he was in consequencenbsp;treated with great harshness by the Russian government of the Caucasus, being compelled, in 1825, to enter the Russian service, andnbsp;ordered to refrain from interfering or co-operating in any missionarynbsp;work. These measures had a most important bearing upon the interestsnbsp;of the mission and to the converts generally ; and the Scotch as well asnbsp;Moravian Missionary Societies, in consequence partly of these and manynbsp;similar restrictions imposed upon them by the Russian government ofnbsp;St. Petersburgh, shortly afterwards relinquished their missions, thoughnbsp;with the greatest regret ; but the settlement at Karass continued to benbsp;occupied several years longer.

Combined with these unpropitious circumstances a great revolution had also taken place in Russia with regard to the Bible Society. Thisnbsp;institution, which, under the fostering care and pious zeal of the Emperornbsp;Alexander, pursued, for several years, so distinguished a career, andnbsp;promised to supply with the Word of Life, not only the Russian population, but the numerous heathen and Mahomedan tribes of that widely-extended empire, is now completely paralyzed, and appears to be dyingnbsp;a lingering death. In consequence of the powerful opposition which,nbsp;in 1825 (which, be it remembered, was the year that Alexander died),nbsp;was raised to the Russian Bible Society, Prince Galltzin, its noble president, retired from that office, and he, at the same time, resigned hisnbsp;situation of minister of religion ; and the no less excellent secretary ofnbsp;the society, M. Papoff, was put upon his trial in the criminal court, fornbsp;allowing a book to be published, in which were some reflections considered unfavourable to the doctrine of the Greek Church relative to thenbsp;Virgin Mary ! It had been intended that the missionaries at Astrachannbsp;should be employed by the Bible Society, to print a new and correctnbsp;edition of Henry Martyn�s Persian New Testament, and the types hadnbsp;even been ordered from Petersburgh ; but this work was now stopped,nbsp;and the missionaries were told that their Tartar version of the Oldnbsp;Testament would have to be submitted to three archbishops of the

Greek Church : so that when they had completed the translation of the version, it was doubtful whether it would be tdlowed to be published. In this state of affairs, the missionaries did not even deemnbsp;it safe to print tracts, without first submitting them to the censorship of the Russian press ; for though their having done so formerlynbsp;(for nearly twenty years) was winked at, it was not supposed it wouldnbsp;be tolerated now ; and the punishment for a breach of the law on thisnbsp;head, would be not only the suppression of the work, but a severe fine,nbsp;if not banishment.*

AU these trying discouragements, together with a growing indifference, on the part of some of the native tribes to receive the scriptures, now that the novelty of the book had passed away, combined to causenbsp;the Scotch and United Brethren�s Societies to withdraw their missionaries, in 1825, as they deemed that so little good could be effected, thatnbsp;it was a waste of labour, men, and money, which could be employed tonbsp;better purpose elsewhere.

The London Missionary Society undertook a mission to Selinginsk, in Siberia, on the frontiers of Chinese Tartary and the Russian dominions,nbsp;in the year 1819. The following account of the rise and progress ofnbsp;this mission is extracted from the Missionary Chronicle for 1823. �Innbsp;1817, Mr. and Mrs. StaUybrass proceeded to St. Petersburgh, with anbsp;view of acquiring some insight into the language and manners of thenbsp;Buriat Mongolians, who lived to the south of Lake Baikal, They werenbsp;here joined by the Rev. CorneUus Rahm, a Swedish clergyman, and innbsp;January 1818 they left St. Petersburgh for Irkutsk, in Siberia, thenbsp;place which was first chosen by the Society to be the head-quarters ofnbsp;the mission. Here they apphed themselves to the study of the Mongolian language, through the medium of the Russian, which they hadnbsp;already learnt. In 1819, Mr. Rahm left Irkutsk for Sarepta (near Astrachan, in Russian Tartary) where the Moravians had then a mission ;nbsp;Mr. Swan was appointed to fill his place among the Buriats, andnbsp;Selinginsk was now chosen, instead of Irkutsk, as the principal stationnbsp;in Siberia.�

In 1820, the missionaries were joined by Mr. and Mrs. Yuille, and a Buriat nobleman from St. Petersburgh, who had been assisting Mr.nbsp;Schmidt, the treasurer of the Russian Bible Society, to translate thenbsp;Scriptures into the Calmuc Tartar dialect. When they had finished thenbsp;Gospel of St. Matthew, the first printed edition was sent to the governornbsp;of Irkutsk to distribute among the Tartars on the shores of Lake Baikal;nbsp;but the Calmuc Tartar character being different to that which the Buriat

tribes had retained, the books were not generally understood by these people, though two of their nobles were found who could decypher thenbsp;character, and were able to read and explain its contents to their countrymen, This so astonished the Buriat chiefs, and the head lama, ornbsp;priest of the Mongolians, that each, among his own people, made a collection amounting to 11,000 rubles (�550), which they sent to thenbsp;Russian Bible Society at St. Petersburgh, begging, at the same time, tonbsp;have the Gospel of St. Matthew, and if possible other books of the Newnbsp;Testament, translated into their own dialect, and printed in a characternbsp;which they could understand. This request gave rise to much discussion as to the manner in which it could be complied with : at length itnbsp;was agreed to send for two of the most learned Mongolians, if suchnbsp;could be found capable of performing such a task ; and Prince Gahtzin,nbsp;(then the Russian prime minister, and a zealous supporter of the Russian Bible Society) sent a requisition to that elFect, to the governor ofnbsp;Irkutsk. The choice fell upon the two Buriat nobles who had interpreted the former edition of St. Matthew, and they accordingly werenbsp;sent to St. Petersburgh. They commenced their labours with greatnbsp;zeal, and the Rev. I. J. Schmidt, thus writes of them, in 1818 : � Before they began their translation they used to bring me extracts of thenbsp;Calmuc Gospel, begging for an explanation of the passages. And herenbsp;appeared the work of the Spirit of God, through the power of his Gospel. They listened with silent attention : their countenances becamenbsp;serious ; and in a solemn tone, full of gentle emotion, they said, � theynbsp;now understood it.� They visited me two or three times a week, alwaysnbsp;bringing their work with them, and at each visit I perceived their progress, not only in the knowledge, but also in the personal application ofnbsp;the sacred Word. After they had completed the translation of thenbsp;twenty-third chapter of Matthew, they came to me, declaring they hadnbsp;resolved to renounce their former superstitions and embrace the Christian faith. I warned them of the trials and persecutions attendant onnbsp;the adoption of the religion of Jesus Christ ; but they replied, � It isnbsp;our firm determination to be followers of Jesus, and to share in his reproach, if that be our lot ; though we hope that such trials may notnbsp;befal us soon, on account of our weakness in the faith.� They had annbsp;idea that when they openly acknowledged themselves Christians, theynbsp;would be considered to have become Russians, of which they and thenbsp;Calmuc Mongohans, had a great horror ; so they resolved not to tellnbsp;their friends immediately of their change of heart, as they dreaded thenbsp;idea of forfeiting their nationality, and they requested I would beg ofnbsp;the Emperor to allow of their retaining their own maimer of life as farnbsp;as was consistent with the precepts of the Gospel ; and more especially

that he would allow of faithful teachers being sent to their nation to point out to them the truth and the way of salvation. Sasang Badma,nbsp;one of these two Buriat nobles, died at Sarepta, in Tartary, in October,nbsp;1822. � Oh! how glad should I be,� concludes Mr. Schmidt, �if itnbsp;were in the power of our Church to send missionaries to this people,nbsp;since by God�s Providence, they have been first led to us.� *

In 1829, Mr. and Mrs. StaUybrass and John Abercrombie, a native printer (who had been a convert at the Scotch station of Karass in Russian Tartary), took up their station and established schools for Buriatnbsp;youth at Knodon, a few mUes distant from Selinginsk, and Mr. Swannbsp;went to reside at Ona, another outstation, while Mr. and Mrs. Yuillenbsp;remained at Selinginsk. In 1838, we find the mission thus mentionednbsp;in the Society�s Reports : � Shagdur and Tekshee, two of the nativenbsp;converts, conduct the daily Mongolian worship with much proprietynbsp;during Mr. StaUybrass�s visit of leave to England : the girl�s school atnbsp;Khodon makes satisfactory progress. The boys are ten in number.nbsp;At Ona, Mr. Swan is surrounded by a number of Buriat youths, whonbsp;have been brought under the influence of religion, and whose chief desire is to impart to their countrymen the blessings they so highly prizenbsp;themselves. The Mongolian Old Testament, as far as Ruth inclusive,nbsp;has been completed. Tekshee is usefully employed in the printing-office.� The whole of the translation of the Scriptures into Buriatnbsp;Mongolian (with the exception of the prophecies of Isaiah) was completed in 1840, and several books had been printed. The number ofnbsp;scholars at the two outstations was, this year, forty-two. The stationnbsp;of Selinginsk was unoccupied. Mrs. StaUybrass died at Ona in 1839 ;nbsp;her truly devoted labours among the heathen of her own sex in Siberia,nbsp;had been crowned with considerable success.! The native convertnbsp;Shagdur, was zealously employed distributing printed portions of thenbsp;Bible in Mongolian to his countrymen in the neighbouring towns on thenbsp;frontiers, near Lake Baikal. In the year 1841, this mission (which fornbsp;twenty years had been the object of the Society�s constant solicitude)nbsp;was suppressed by an order from the Russian Synod,�the reason givennbsp;being, � that the mission, in relation to that form of Christianity alreadynbsp;established in the Russian empire, did not coincide with the views ofnbsp;the Church and the Government.� The missionaries write concerningnbsp;the abandonment of this mission �It is painful to bid adieu to thenbsp;scenes where we have spent so many years, and to the people of whom,nbsp;we trust, the first-fruits have been gathered unto Christ. They are

Mr. Schmidt belonged to the Church of the United Brethren. See � Missionary Register� for 1840.

living evidences that we have not laboured in vain, and earnests of the abundant harvest to be expected when the Word of God shall have freenbsp;course and be glorified in this land.� Messrs. Swan and Stallybrassnbsp;fully completed the printing of the Mongolian Old Testament, previousnbsp;to their quitting the Selinginsk missionary station. The printing of thenbsp;whole of the New, necessarily stands over to some future period ; butnbsp;some of the Gospels had been printed and circulated in considerablenbsp;numbers.

In whatever light we regard British India, whether as relates to its magnificent scenery, its mighty rivers, and majestic and snow-cappednbsp;mountain boundary, the immensity of its population, its gradual andnbsp;wonderful subjugation by the small island of Great Britain, its wealthnbsp;and fertility, or the degradation of its idolatrous, though intelligentnbsp;people ; we must be sensible of the great difficulty there is to convey anbsp;full and clear idea of all its various features in a small compass, such asnbsp;we must necessarily confine ourselves to in this volume. But for furthernbsp;particulars regarding this interesting country, the reader may hereby benbsp;led to search for himself in the numerous works, from some of whichnbsp;these few imperfect remarks have been selected.

The country called Hindostan in our books of geography, is designated, in many Missionary Reports, as � India within the Ganges.� Its boundaries are clearly marked by nature ; they are the lofty chain ofnbsp;Himalaya mountains to the north ; the river Indus to the west ; to thenbsp;south-east the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal, which wash thenbsp;two opposite coasts of this extensive peninsula (called the coasts ofnbsp;Malabar and Coromandel) ; and to the north-east the more undefinednbsp;boundary of the river Burrampooter. The British empire in India isnbsp;computed to contain upwards of a million of square miles, inclusive ofnbsp;the protected and tributary states, which is nearly as large an area asnbsp;the whole continent of Europe.*

* See Mr, Martin on the Colonies, p. 1, and Wallace�s Memoirs of India, p. .316.

tered by the noble Ganges and its tributary streams ; the more southern part of the peninsula, between the Malabar and Coromandel coasts, though it cannot be called comparatively mountainous, is yet a very hiUynbsp;country. British India is divided into four provinces, or, as they arenbsp;called, presidencies, viz. Calcutta, Agra, Madras, and Bombay, which takenbsp;their names from the four principal cities, or capitals, the chief seat ofnbsp;government in each presidency�Calcutta being the seat of the Governor-General of the whole Indian empire. North of Delhi and Agra, thenbsp;British territories are extremely mountainous, the ranges run parallel tonbsp;each other, each successively supporting a flat table-land, one above thenbsp;other, and hence the terms ghauts or steps. The country here is drynbsp;and sandy, and a great part of it covered with dense jungle and forests :nbsp;it is wild and rugged, and interspersed with deep ravines and rapidnbsp;water-courses. The romantic valley of the Nerbudda extends for threenbsp;hundred miles, and is from fifteen to twenty miles wide. The sides ofnbsp;the mountain-ranges are covered with immense forests and thick jungles ;nbsp;and the river is obstructed in its course by numerous rocks and shallows,nbsp;and by magnificent and beautiful cataracts. The province, in which arenbsp;Simla and Loodeana, is composed of the lower ranges of the loftynbsp;Himalaya mountains. The vailles are extremely narrow, exhibiting,nbsp;from a commanding view, the appearance of a wide expanse of steep andnbsp;rugged ravines. The city of Almora (latitude 29 degrees, longitude 79nbsp;degrees), is built on a ridge of mountains, 5400 feet high, and is exceedingly bleak and naked. Simla itself, near the river Sutlej, wherenbsp;the Bengal government have formed a delightful military station, andnbsp;where a Christian church is now building, is situated at the height ofnbsp;7486 feet above the level of the sea ; and is described by travellers asnbsp;an extremely grand and beautiful situation. The sea-coast of Bengal isnbsp;low and flat, and very marshy, a sort of labyrinth of salt-water lakes,nbsp;rivers, and creeks, interspersed with shifting islets of sand and mud,nbsp;covered with mangrove trees.*

The territories which compose the Madras presidency extend along the western side of the Bay of Bengal, and comprise nearly all thenbsp;southern extremity of the peninsula (except the kingdoms of Travancorenbsp;and Cochin, which are tributary states, but not absolutely under Britishnbsp;government). The northern Circars, or Teloogoo country, is low andnbsp;flat, and separated from the province of Hyderabad by a range of detached hills ; the whole of the Lower Carnatic (of which Madras is thenbsp;capital), is also sandy and flat, and watered by several rivers descendingnbsp;from the Western Ghauts ; but from Cape Comorin, up the Malabar

coast, on the western side of the peninsula, the aspect of the country is totally different. The little state of Travancore, extending from thenbsp;cape 140 miles northwards by 40 miles inland, presents to the viewnbsp;Vallies running down to the sea, clothed with perennial verdure ; then,nbsp;beyond that a lovely scene of hiUs and dales, the latter richly cultivated,nbsp;while, still further inland, are seen the gigantic Western Ghauts, crownednbsp;to their very summit with immense forests of teak, bamboo, amp;c.,nbsp;forming altogether one of the most splendid pictures of tropical scenerynbsp;to be witnessed in any part of the globe. The Eastern and Westernnbsp;Ghauts, mountains which run from north to south parallel to each other,nbsp;are separated by a lower range of hills, extending for about thirty-fivenbsp;miles from east to west, called the Nilgherries, and consist of an elevatednbsp;table-land, rising from 2000 to 5000 feet above the level of the sea, andnbsp;comprising some of the most fruitful districts of the Madras presidency.

The district of Tinnevelly occupies the south-eastern extremity of the peninsula, and is 120 miles in length and from 60 to 70 in breadth.nbsp;The northern part is rich in plains of cotton and grain ; nearly thenbsp;whole is in the hands of large landed proprietors, called zemindars�nbsp;descendants of the ancient Polygar race. They are a kind of feudalnbsp;lords, and exercise a very despotic authority over their vassals or tenants.nbsp;The Mysore is a considerably elevated country, 210 miles in length bynbsp;140 in breadth. At Bangalore the surface is undulating, and nearlynbsp;�3000 feet above the level of the sea ; but about Seringapatam thenbsp;country falls rapidly, with a somewhat sudden descent. In so elevated a country as the whole of the south of India, there are no largenbsp;rivers to compare with those of Bengal ; but those that descend fromnbsp;the Western Ghauts, as the Godavery, the Cavery, and several others,nbsp;contribute greatly to enrich and fertilize the country ; and, when swollennbsp;by the periodical rains, rush down over the dry and thirsty land,nbsp;spreading joy and plenty around. Several excellent roads have been madenbsp;by the government in the Madras presidency, and some bridges over thenbsp;Cavery are magnificent structures ; one, in particular, built by a nativenbsp;gentleman at his own expense, consists of more than a hundred arches.*

The sea-coast of the Bombay t presidency consists of a series of steep and rocky mountains, from 2000 to 4000 feet high, declining towards the sea, and covered in some places with fertile rice-tracts, irrigated by mountain-streams. This country was the strong-hold of thenbsp;warlike Mahrattas, and every hill was once surmounted by a fortress,nbsp;once belonging to these piratical tribes, but now falling into decay, j

* See Montgomery Martin on British India, vol. i. t Bombay signifies � Bom bahia,� � good bay.�nbsp;� See Montgomerj- Martin, vol. i. p. 74.

The districts of Surat and Guzerat extend over an extensive portion of wild mountainous country, and extensive sea-coast, covered with jungle ;nbsp;and there are some fertile and cultivated tracts watered by several noblenbsp;rivers, as the Nerbudda and others. Cutch is a rich mineral province,nbsp;abounding in coal and iron. The provinces of Poonah and Ahmed-nuggur are elevated 2000 feet above the sea, and are intersected bynbsp;many rivers and streams, flowing through the most lovely vallies thenbsp;sun ever shone upon, and the summits of the hills crowned with nativenbsp;fortresses of a highly picturesque aspect.

This vast country, of which a very brief and rough delineation has now been given, is distinguished above all other parts of the globe bynbsp;two very striking features�its extremely lofty mountains, which completely shut it out from the wild plains and bleak table lands of Thibetnbsp;and Chinese Tartary, and its magnificent and extensive rivers, comparednbsp;to which the Thames is but a rivulet! The Indus is 17,000 miles innbsp;length, and, for 780 miles from its mouth, there is water enough to sailnbsp;a two-hundred ton ship ; and, in many places, it is from four to ninenbsp;miles wide. From the sea to Lahore there is an uninterrupted navigation for whole fleets of vessels, a distance of one thousand miles, withoutnbsp;either rocks or rapids to obstruct the ascent. The Ganges is 15,000nbsp;miles in length, and, at three hundred miles from the sea, the channel isnbsp;thirty feet deep in the dry season, when the water is at its lowest. Thisnbsp;magnificent river, like the Indus, rises amidst the perpetual snows of thenbsp;lofty Himalaya mountains, 14,000 feet above the level of the sea ! Thenbsp;Indus flows west, and th� Ganges east ; and intervening between lAhichnbsp;there are large tracts of sandy plains, which separate our territories fromnbsp;Cabul ; so that the entrance into the latter country is either to thenbsp;north by Loodiana, or ascending the river Indus from the sea. Amongnbsp;the other noble rivers of India are the Sutlej, which forms the northwest boundary of the British territories, and is nine hundred miles innbsp;length, before its junction with the Indus ; the Jumna, which risesnbsp;near Simla, and falls into the Ganges at Patna : the Godavery, whichnbsp;rises in the mountains of Bombay, and falls into the sea on the easternnbsp;shores of the peninsula, just above Masulipatam ; the beautiful Cavery,nbsp;with its lovely falls ; and many others of less note.

The Himalaya mountains (whose name signifies � the abode of snow�), elevate their stupendous peaks from 20,000 to 27,000 feetnbsp;above the level of the ocean, forming a vast alpine belt eighty miles innbsp;width.* Twenty thousand feet have been barometrically measured ;

* From Cashmere to its western extremity the Himalaya chain bears the name of Hindoo Koosh, which is the peculiar designation of one of its highest snowy peaks.nbsp;This part of the range is visible from the city of Cabul.

and enterprising English travellers have found some plants and flowers in blossom at the enormous height of 16,000 feet; at 13,000, the birch,nbsp;juniper, and pine, are found ; and, at 12,000, the majestic oak, toweringnbsp;amidst the desolations of nature. The Umits of ground cultivated bynbsp;man have not extended beyond 10,000 feet, on the southern or Indiannbsp;side ; but on the northern side, Tartar villages are found in the valley ofnbsp;the Baspa river, at 11,400 feet high, whose inhabitants frequently cutnbsp;green crops ; and even as high as 13,000 feet the habitations of mannbsp;are to be met with. The Himalaya glens, or passes, run, for the mostnbsp;part, from N.N.E. to S.S.W., the north-west face being invariablynbsp;rugged and steep, while the opposite sides, facing south-east are shelving.nbsp;The roads to the most frequented passes lie upon the gentlest acclivity.*

Both the British territories in India and those states which are only protected, contain a great number of large towns and cities, as willnbsp;be seen by consulting a geographical map of India, (our missionarynbsp;map mentions only a few of those places which are not missionary stations) ; besides cities and towns, there are also an innumerable assemblagenbsp;of villages, each containing on an average many thousands of inhabitants, as may be seen by consulting Montgomery Martin�s account ofnbsp;British India, in his first volume of the Colonies. For instance, henbsp;states that the district of Patna, which is 667 square miles in extent,nbsp;contains upwards of one thousand villages ; that of Cuttack is 9,000nbsp;square miles in extent, and contains upwards of 10,000 villages ; thatnbsp;of Dinapore numbers nearly 6,000 square miles, and contains morenbsp;than 12,000 villages ; again, that of Burdwan is 2000 square miles, andnbsp;comprises 6500 villages ! If these statements are correct, we shallnbsp;see what a thickly-peopled country India is ! The proportion ofnbsp;Europeans to Asiatics, Montgomery Martin states, is as one to fivenbsp;thousand. Mr. Weitbrecht observes : � Every mile or two, a new village appears ; the most populous part of England bears no proportionnbsp;to this thickly -inhabited plain, (Bengal) whose villages often contain asnbsp;many as five, yea, ten thousand souls.� Mr. Weitbrecht (in his worknbsp;on Mission India) says, that the Mahometan people, or descendants ofnbsp;the Moguls, form a tenth part of the population of the province of Bengal. Hindostan being situated within the tropical zone, and being, innbsp;a great measure, a vast plain sheltered on the north by very lofty mountains, it follows that it must be, as regards climate, extremely hot. Innbsp;India there are only three seasons in the year,�the hot season, whichnbsp;lasts from March to June ; the rainy, or monsoon season, from June tonbsp;October ; and the coU season, from November to the end of February.

During the hot season, says Mr. Weitbrecht, the southern and western winds prevail, and every thing becomes dry and burnt up. In Bengalnbsp;the ground is quite pulverized, and little verdure prevails, except in thenbsp;vicinity of water. Occasionally the intense heat of the air is cooled bynbsp;thunder-storms, preceded by dreadful and tempestuous winds, whichnbsp;tear up large trees by their roots, and lay the cottages of the nativesnbsp;prostrate, while thick masses of dust, raised by the wind into clouds,nbsp;almost obstruct the light of day. In a northerly climate, it is almostnbsp;impossible to form any idea of the fury of the elements in tropical countries. But dreadful as these storms are, they are often accompaniednbsp;(when the wind has passed away) with heavy and refreshing rain ; andnbsp;their effect is so delightful, that people rejoice at seeing the heavy cloudsnbsp;obscure the face of the clear blue sky, and lessen for a time the extremenbsp;heat of the burning sun. In the middle of June the annual rains commence ; they are ushered in by a dreadful storm in Madras and thenbsp;south of India, and by the wind called the � monsoon,� preceded by anbsp;calm, during which the heat is almost insufferable, so that the creation isnbsp;literally sighing after refreshment and coolness. During the rainy seasons the plains are overflowed ; and in Bengal the villages are built onnbsp;ground which has been previously raised, to prevent the houses fromnbsp;being washed away . As much rain falls in the four wet months in Bengal, as during four years in our northerly climates. During July andnbsp;August it absolutely pours down in streams.* During this season thenbsp;smaller rivers in India which had become nearly dry in the hot season,nbsp;rise to such a height as to overflow their banks. This is very useful fornbsp;vegetation, but it often does great mischief to the habitations of thenbsp;lower classes.

As there are no wells in India, water is carefully preserved in large tanks, or reservoirs, which are built and kept up at a great expense bynbsp;the Government. Although the chmate of India generally speaking isnbsp;that of intense heat, which especially in Bengal is much increased bynbsp;the excessive dampness of the atmosphere,t yet there are many partsnbsp;of Hindostan where this great sultriness is materially lessened, and thenbsp;climate becomes not only bearable, but delightful even to Europeans.nbsp;Montgomery Martin observes ; � The north-east provinces of the Bengal presidency (where the country is cleared of jungle and forest} innbsp;positions elevated above the level of the sultry plains, the climate isnbsp;described as being very fine. This is the case at the military station of

This very oppressive dampness is caused, it is supposed, by the saltness of the air and the saline quality of many of the plants, the want of a proper drainage, and thenbsp;luxuriance of a tropical vegetation. See Montgomery Martin on the Colonies.

Cherrapoonjee, on the Cassia (or Kossya) hills, four days march from Assam, which is found by Europeans remarkably healthy.* Its heightnbsp;above the sea is said to be upwards of 6000 feet. The provinces ofnbsp;Allahabad, Delhi, and Agra, continues Mr. Martin, are comparativelynbsp;temperate, and the climate of central India in elevated situations is delightful, approaching to that in the south of Europe. Although thenbsp;thermometer may rise to 100 degrees in the day, yet the nights arenbsp;bland and invigorating.� f In the province of Cuttack (S.W. of Calcutta) the climate is less moist than in Bengal, and refreshing seanbsp;breezes blow continually, from March to July : the same is the casenbsp;with Assam and the coasts of Burmah, where the high lands are cool,nbsp;and when the jungle is cleared, not unsuited to Europeans. The lownbsp;lands in the Madras presidency are extremely hot, with dense exhalations ; but the higher parts are dry, cool, and healthy, as may be said ofnbsp;the table lands of Mysore. In the Carnatic, the thermometer rangesnbsp;higher than in Bengal (to 100 or 106 degrees), and the cold season isnbsp;very short, but the moisture and evaporation not being so great as innbsp;Bengal, the heat is not so severely felt. On the beautiful Nilgherries,nbsp;the climate is remarkable for its mildness and equability,�the air isnbsp;generally perfectly clear, and there are no sultry nights. 1 The atmosphere is famed for its elasticity, and for occasioning great lightness andnbsp;buoyancy of spirits.� Bangalore is represented by the same writer asnbsp;one of the healthiest stations in India.

Tlie vegetable productions of this most beautiful portion of the earth�s surface are so varied, so numerous, and upon so magnificent a scale,nbsp;both as to size and usefulness, as almost to baffle all attempts at a briefnbsp;delineation, we shall however endeavour to mention a few of the mostnbsp;useful and striking. The grand staple produce of India is rice (whichnbsp;is the principal food of the natives) ; it generally yields an abundantnbsp;harvest, except when the rain falls too slightly, or when inundationsnbsp;occur; for (says Mr. Weitbrecht) �the wild flood often destroys thenbsp;fields and covers them with dry sand some feet in height, so that thenbsp;land must lie waste for years, until the luxuriant vegetation again formsnbsp;a fresh soil.� The same author tells us, that � the Hindoo ploughs innbsp;the water, (which covers the ground after the heavy rains), and whennbsp;the soil is sufflciently mixed, he transplants the rice into it, whichnbsp;has been previously sown very thick in a prepared piece of ground.nbsp;The rice grows in the water, affording us with an explanation of anbsp;passage in Isaiah, not generally understood here : � Blessed are they

* Here the Welsh Methodists have established their mission. See Statistical Table. See Montgomery Martin on the Colonies, vol. i. p. 93.

� Ibid. p. 98. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� Ibid.

that SOW beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.� Besides affording food to the bulk of its immense population with this productive grain, India exports great quantities tonbsp;other countries. The Isle of France population are almost entirelynbsp;fed with Bengal rice.� * After the rice harvest is over, corn, peas,nbsp;beans, and other vegetables are planted ; and if rain falls in December, by February or March they reap a second harvest. Wheat isnbsp;very fine about Krishnagur. In the lower parts of Bengal the sugarcane grows in profusion. It is manufactured about Benares, but thenbsp;sugar of the East Indies, principally owing to the inferior mode of preparing, is of a coarser kind than that of the West India islands.f Thenbsp;sea-coast border of our Indian territories, is covered with the gracefulnbsp;and almost indispensable cocoa-nut palm, which grows to luxuriance innbsp;sandy and barren spots where scarcely any other valuable plant willnbsp;thrive. The palms bear no branches, they rise with a single straightnbsp;stem, and throw out at the top a bunch of large and spreading leaves,nbsp;some shaped like feathers, as the Cocoa-nut palm, and others with hugenbsp;fan-shaped leaves, like the Palmyra palm, which also is a native of southern Hindostan, and grows along the sandy coasts of the Madras presidency in great profusion. It sometimes, says Murray, reaches to thenbsp;height of a hundred feet, and one of its enormous leaves is sufficientlynbsp;large to shelter twelve men ; its abundant juice (which is obtained bynbsp;cutting off the young flower-buds which are inclosed in a large sheath,nbsp;and letting the liquor run out into a vessel hung beneath), seems usednbsp;in three different forms by the natives of India,�1st, that of a simplenbsp;refreshing beverage, when it first runs fresh from the palm, this is callednbsp;puttaneer, or palm-wine;�2ndly, this same juice, boiled down to a thicknbsp;syrup, and poured into cocoa-nut shells left to harden in the sun, is callednbsp;kuripekutti, or black lump, and is a favourite article of food with thenbsp;natives of Tinnevelly and Madras ;�and 3rdly, the toddy, or fermentednbsp;juice of both the cocoa-nut and the Palmyra palm. The natives likewise eat the Palmyra fruit, which is pulpy and soft, and incloses threenbsp;small nuts, which when sown in the ground, throws out a taper root, innbsp;shape and size like a small carrot, which is dug up as soon as the greennbsp;shoot appears above it out of the ground. When boiled it tastes like annbsp;indifferent potatoe, and affords the poor natives of southern India theirnbsp;food for a portion of the year.}: The leaves of the palm are used by thenbsp;natives for thatching their huts, and for making the fences of their gardens, or they are split into strips called Oleis, or OllaJis, and used for

See Thornton�s � State of India,� � See � South Indian Sketches,� vol. ii. p. 41.

books and writings, or cut into still narrower strips, and woven into their sleeping-mats or made into baskets. There is not a single part ofnbsp;the cocoa-nut tree which the natives do not apply to some useful purpose. The plant from which the dye called indigo is produced, is extensively cultivated in India, and is considered superior to any other ;nbsp;the leaves are steeped and boiled, and produce the blue sediment which,nbsp;when pressed and hardened into cakes by the sun, forms the indigo ofnbsp;commerce. The tobacco plant is extensively cultivated in Guzerat andnbsp;other parts of India. The cotton-plant is a native also of the Eastnbsp;Indies, and a great quantity of it is growm for exportation to England ;nbsp;but it is inferior to West Indian cotton, principally owing to the ignorance and prejudices of the Hindoos in the way of preparing it.* Thenbsp;cotton used in manufacture is the lining of the pod or seed-vessel of anbsp;pretty climbing plant which bears a large yellow flower�the pods before they burst being about the size of a large plum ; but there is also anbsp;tree which grows in the tropics, called the silk-cotton tree, whose fruitnbsp;yields a soft silky cotton, which is much used in the eastern Asiaticnbsp;islands, and on the continent, for mattresses, pillows, amp;c. The forestnbsp;trees of India are not to be surpassed in any country for superbness andnbsp;number ; and there is no part of the country from Cape Comorin to thenbsp;Himalaya whpre they do not abound, especially in the mountainous districts : among them are the oak, teak, pine,t fir, jack, chesnut, cedar,nbsp;ebony, walnut, and yew. There is likewise the spreading banian, withnbsp;its multitudes of roots descending from the branches till they reach thenbsp;ground, and forming supports to the whole gigantic mass, sometimes tonbsp;the number of 320 large and 3000 smaller ones ; the useful bamboo (nonbsp;less gigantic as a grass than is the banian as a tree), the tree-fern, andnbsp;the willow, which in Nepaul grows to an enormous size. � Bengal,�nbsp;says Mr. Weitbrecht, � abounds in fruit-trees : the best known arenbsp;the mango, pine-apple, citron, orange, plantain, and pomegranate. Thenbsp;mulberry is cultivated for the sake of the silk-worm. Roses are cultivated in great quantities in many parts of India for the purpose ofnbsp;making the powerful scent called otto or attar of roses. On all thenbsp;mountains of Hindostan the flowers and fruits of Europe are foundnbsp;growing wild in great profusion. Tlie northern and hill provinces grownbsp;at one season European grains, and at anotiier those which are peculiarnbsp;to the tropics. Wheat is imported into England at a great profit ; andnbsp;flour for making starch, is one of the annual exports from Calcutta.

In the north-west provinces of British India, near the Himalaya Mountains, the pine and arbor-vit� are met with 2.5 feet in girth, and 120 feet high without a branch !nbsp;See Montgomery Martin, vol. i.

Of dyes, medicinal drugs, resins, gums, and oils, there are numerous varieties. In short, India is rich to overflowing with every product ofnbsp;vegetable life which an all-wise and ever-heneficent Providence couldnbsp;bestow to gratify the sight or satisfy the wants of his creatures.

The British possessions in India (says Montgomery Martin) abound in iron, copper, lead, antimony, plumbago, sulphur, and gold, together withnbsp;inexhaustible supplies of coal,�the best is on the north-east frontier ; butnbsp;in general the coal is of an inferior kind to that found in other countries. The coals now procured at Cherrapoonjee, on the eastern frontier, is of a very valuable kind. Gold is found to a considerable extentnbsp;in Assam. In the district of Burdwan there are extensive coal-pits,nbsp;from which the steamers are supphed that ply on the Ganges. Nothingnbsp;is wanted but capital and enterprizing men to open the rich resourcesnbsp;of the land. The natives of Bengal are smelting iron, and manufacturing it into common tools, on a small scale. In several of the riversnbsp;they are washing gold out of the sand.� *

The quadrupeds that characterize more particularly the regions of continental India are, the lion, tiger, leopard, rhinoceros, bear, buffalo,nbsp;antelopes of several kinds, stags, porcupines, baboons, monkeys, bats,nbsp;ichneumons, otters, and rats. The stately Asiatic elephant roams atnbsp;large in the forests in considerable herds ; it is also domesticated, and innbsp;common use ; its services appear universal, and it is as essential to thenbsp;Indian sportsman as a good horse is to the Enghsh fox-hunter. Whatnbsp;a contrast these enormous creatures must present to the beautiful littlenbsp;four-homed antelope, which is only twenty inches in height from thenbsp;shoulders downwards. There are various kinds of snakes in India ; thenbsp;copra-capella averages from one and a-half to six and a-half feet innbsp;length, and preys upon quadrupeds, such as rats, amp;c. The peacock isnbsp;the glory of Indian ornithology ; the jungle-cock is spread over thenbsp;whole peninsula. The fan-tail pigeons vie with the parrots in the brilliancy yet softness of their tints. All the birds of India are remarkablenbsp;for their varied and gay-coloured plumage. Among the birds of Indianbsp;are also gigantic cranes and herons. Some of these birds, which are asnbsp;tall as a man, eat animal food, and devour fish and land-reptiles to annbsp;incredible amount, and consequently they are held by the natives innbsp;great estimation. There are also several kinds of vultures and falcons,nbsp;the former are extremely useful in clearing the country of all deadnbsp;animal matter, which if suffered to remain upon the ground in that hotnbsp;climate would produce incalculable evils. Among the insects of India,nbsp;the large ants are also the universal destroyers and removers of all

useless or decayed matter, whether vegetable or animal. Although not quite so numerous and beautifully varied as in the tropical regions ofnbsp;America, yet the butterflies, and some very large beetles, of India, arenbsp;truly magniflcent. This country also furnishes several kinds of silkworms, from which less fine but more durable garments than thosenbsp;made from the common silk-worm are fabricated.*

: nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;SECT. II.�POLITICAL AND COLONIAL HISTORY.

� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;History informs us that the Moguls�a fierce and tyrannical people,

from Cabool and Tartary�under their Mahometan rulers held a cruel fand oppressive sway in India, from the close of the tenth to that of thenbsp;fifteenth century, Tlie Portuguese, having discovered the passage roundnbsp;]nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;the Cape of Good Hope, landed on the Malabar coast, on the western

� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;shores of the vast peninsula of Hindostan, in 1498 ; and for many years

afterwards a Portuguese fleet annually visited India, and returned to Lisbon laden with treasure and merchandize. They also carried on anbsp;considerable trade with Ceylon and the islands of the Indian Archipelago, The Dutch used to buy the productions of the East, thusnbsp;brought by them to Lisbon, and disperse them among the Western

I nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;* See Murray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography,� pp. 8,58, flGfi.

nations of Europe. But when Philip II. of Spain prohibited the Dutch from holding this intercourse with Portugal, they themselves went tonbsp;India, established settlements in Ceylon and Java, and formed an Eastnbsp;India Company, for the purposes of trade with the East. It was innbsp;1599, that a body of English Merchants applied to Queen Elizabeth fornbsp;permission to trade with India ; and the royal charter granted them,nbsp;which secured to them the exclusive right of trading in the Indian Seas,nbsp;laid the foundation of the famous � East India Company ��a strikingnbsp;instance (observes a late writer on Bengal) of what momentous andnbsp;important results flow from originally trifling causes, under the directionnbsp;of the all-wise Providence of God ; � who saw fit that other civilizednbsp;nations of Western Europe should attempt the subjugation of India, butnbsp;that only Britain should be permitted to succeed.

In 1632, the Mogul Emperor of Delhi granted permission to these English merchants to trade, and establish a factory, at a small town innbsp;the district of Midnapore, near Orissa in Bengal, there being then nonbsp;other port to which they were admitted. In 1656, the English tradersnbsp;received the Mogul�s sanction to establish a factory on the river Hoogly,nbsp;one of the lower branches of the Ganges, along the hanks of which thenbsp;Portuguese, Dutch, French, and Danes had previously established factories, within ten miles of each other. In 1681, the English East Indianbsp;Company had factories at Patna, and at Cozimbuzar on the Ganges ;nbsp;and, in 1686, removed their Hoogly factory to a village called Chutta-nutty (now the city of Calcutta). In 1704, they bought the smallnbsp;adjoining district of Calcutta (originally Kalee Ghaut, or � the landing-place of the goddess Kalee�), of one of the Mogul princes, who was innbsp;want of money to carry on his wars. Previous to this, in 1696, whennbsp;the rebellion of Soujah Sing (a native Hindoo prince) broke out againstnbsp;the Mogul power at Delhi, the Enghsh solicited and obtained permissionnbsp;of the authorities at that place to erect defences around their factories ;nbsp;which was the first time that the jealous Mahomedans had permittednbsp;Europeans to fortify their residences, which' were originally exclusivelynbsp;� trading factories� or �houses.� Their first fortified factory theynbsp;named Fort William, in compliment to King William HI. This smallnbsp;possession was in 1707, dignified with the title of � presidency,� andnbsp;was manned with a garrison of 129 soldiers, one gunner, and his crewnbsp;of 25 men ! And thus was laid the foundation of this wonderful empire,nbsp;which, ere long, was destined to spread its authority from the mouthsnbsp;of the Ganges to the Indus, from Cape Comorin to the Himalayanbsp;mountains.*

For nearly half a century the British pursued a peaceful and profitable commerce, till, in 1756, the ferocious Moslem ruler of Delhi, Surajee adnbsp;Dowlah, invested and captured the East India Company�s factory atnbsp;Calcutta, and placed Mr. Hol well and his 146 companions in a dungeonnbsp;(since called � the Black-hole �) only eighteen feet square ; and, in lessnbsp;than twenty-four hours, not more than twenty-four Englishmen remained of the British presidency in Bengal ! It was not likely that thisnbsp;wanton and cruel outrage upon the British nation woidd remain longnbsp;unavenged. Lieutenant-Colonel Clive was immediately sent off fromnbsp;Madras with 900 Europeans and 1500 sepoy troops, and a squadron ofnbsp;five ships of the line, who soon succeeded in completely routing thenbsp;Mahometan forces, who fled at the approach of the English army.nbsp;Surajee was afterwards completely defeated with great loss by thenbsp;British ; when he concluded terms of peace, and the Company werenbsp;allowed to fortify Calcutta, and carry on their trade as before.

The power of the Mahometans in India had been for some time gradually declining, and England being now engaged in a war with France, thought it prudent to depose the Moslem ruler, and set up a Bengaleenbsp;military chief in his stead, with whom they stipulated that he was tonbsp;drive out the French from Bengal, and pay a large sum of money tonbsp;indemnify them for the injuries they had received from Surajee. Thisnbsp;was soon after followed by our taking the fort of Chandernagore fromnbsp;the French ; and the decisive victory of Plassey, when 2000 sepoynbsp;troops and 900 English, under Lord Clive, defeated 68,000 of Surajee�snbsp;forces, together with a body of French officers, and fifty pieces of artillery. The loss of the British being only 24 killed and 48 wounded !nbsp;Montgomery Martin informs us that an interesting romance has beennbsp;founded by the natives upon this memorable fact ; and that the Hindoos delight in pointing to such instances of the retributive justice ofnbsp;heaven.*

From this time till 1825, a succession of contests took place, till the whole of the territories which now form the four presidencies of Indianbsp;were subjugated to British rule or alliance. For some time after thenbsp;fall of the Mogul dynasty, the Mahrattas, a powerful race, inhabiting anbsp;great part of the north-western provinces and the western coasts, continued to give the English much annoyance, under the government ofnbsp;numerous native chiefs or rajahs. The dominions of Scindia were nevernbsp;finally conquered, though some of the states were made tributary tonbsp;Great Britain. War has very lately been renewed in these provincesnbsp;bordering on the Indus, and many of the unsubdued states have been

forced to submit to our authority ; among them is Scinde, or the delta of the Indus, in which territory we have now several military stations,nbsp;as Ferozpore, Shirkapore, Loodiana, amp;c.

In contemplating Hindostan as it now exists, the power of Britain appears entirely predominant. The number of Europeans by whomnbsp;these vast dominions are held in subjection very little exceeds 30,000.nbsp;But this number is rendered effective by that peculiarity in the characternbsp;of the Hindoo, which makes it easy to train him into an instrument fornbsp;holding his own country in subjection. He has scarcely an idea of possessing a country of his own, and is totally devoid of all patriotism.nbsp;� The Asiatic,� says Mr. Fraser, � fights for pay and plunder, andnbsp;whose bread he eats, his cause he will defend against friends, country,nbsp;and family.� Accordingly the sepoys (Indian troops commanded bynbsp;British officers, and trained after the European manner,) are found asnbsp;efficient as troops entirely British ; and so long as they are well treated,nbsp;they are equally faithful, and often show great attachment to theirnbsp;officers. Their number amounted, in 1844, to 230,000 infantry, andnbsp;26,000 cavalry. The purely European troops maintained by the Company do not exceed 8000 ; but a large body of the Queen�s troops arenbsp;likewise employed in India. These forces are variously distributednbsp;throughout the country ; for, besides defending and holding in subjec-� tion the territories immediately under British sway, bodies of them arenbsp;stationed at the cities of the tributary princes, at once to secure andnbsp;overawe them.

The influence of British authority is not confined to the four presidencies of Calcutta, Madras, Bombay, and Agra; it is exerted over nearly the whole of India,* by virtue of protective treaties with thenbsp;native princes, who govern their own states under the controul of British power, which is represented in their courts by an English resident.

� There is in India, not only a mixture of Mahometan and Hindoo population, but there still exists a considerable number of Mahometannbsp;as well as Hindoo governments. The Hindoo sovereigns, generally-called rajahs (a word signifying prince), have always been independentnbsp;of each other ; but the rulers of the smaller Mahometan states, callednbsp;nawaubs, or nabobs, were always dependent on the Mahometan viceroys)'nbsp;of provinces, and, through them, on the government of the Greatnbsp;Mogul, at Delhi, There never are wanting among the Mahometans,nbsp;bigotted zealots, who, under the influence of an intolerant creed, are

* Scarcely any state row, except the kingdom of Nepanl, to the north of Bengal, is entirely independent of Great Britain.

Some of whom, as the Viceroy of Hyderabad, still remain ; and the � Nizam� (or Prince) of the Deccan, one of our allies, is dependant upon him.

ready to seize any opportunity of exciting the hostile feelings of their fellow-believers against their acknowledged conquerors, the English ;nbsp;and the remarkably rapid secret communication carried on among thenbsp;natives, alfords a great facility for plots and conspiracies against ournbsp;government.� * Most of the protected states (observes Mr. Thornton)nbsp;are wretchedly misgoverned, and there cannot be the slightest doubtnbsp;that the people would be far happier as British subjects.

In India, the great source from which the financial wants of the state are supplied, is the land revenue. It is chiefly collected by the nativenbsp;landholders, or zemindars ; and often in a very arbitrary and oppressivenbsp;manner. The other sources of Indian revenue are monopolies of salt,nbsp;opium, and tobacco ; the former being alone retained by the East Indianbsp;Company. There ai-e also transit duties, or a tax on all merchandizenbsp;passing through the country ; the customs, and assessed taxes, whichnbsp;include duties on intoxicating hquors and drugs, stamp duties, thenbsp;wheel-tax, amp;c. The post-office is not much used by the natives, andnbsp;the sum derived from it is as yet comparatively trifling. Notwithstanding that the vast territory of Hindostan is chiefly under the control andnbsp;authority of a foreign power, yet it is peopled by a native race who,nbsp;during the subjection of a thousand years, have preserved imaltered allnbsp;the features of their original character ; they retain in full force, thatnbsp;earliest form, a village constitution, their attachment to which is excessively strong. Each village is considered as a political association, andnbsp;includes all the surrounding territory from which the inhabitants drawnbsp;their subsistence. All public services and trades (with the exception ofnbsp;the cultivators of the sod) are held by hereditary succession, and arenbsp;paid out of a portion of the land. The principal chief or manager ofnbsp;all is termed the head-man of the village, who exercises (as well as thenbsp;zemindars) a kind of despotic authority over the inhabitants, who can,nbsp;however, sometimes find redress for their grievances from British courtsnbsp;of law. According to parliamentary statements, it has been estimatednbsp;that the presidency of Calcutta (which is now divided, and includes thenbsp;two presidencies of Calcutta and Agra) contains a population of nearlynbsp;seventy millions ; that of Madras upwards of thirteen millions, and thatnbsp;of Bombay upwards of six millions ; and that the states under Britishnbsp;protection contain about forty millions of people,�making a total ofnbsp;more than 130 millions of people in all India ! But this statement isnbsp;not a very recent one, and many writers now affirm that the populationnbsp;of India more neaidy approaches to 200 millions. Of these, one-tenth

* See � South Indian Sketches,� vol. i. See � State of India,� by E. Thornton, Esq. 18,3.5.

is supposed to be Mahometans, or descendants of the Moguls. Mr. Weitbrecht observes, these are easily distinguished from the Hindoosnbsp;by the difference of their features.

The external trade of India is not directly carried on with England, except in some few instances, as raw cotton, amp;c. Its chief importance,nbsp;as connected with the interests of our own country, must be attached tonbsp;the extensive trade carried on between India and China. The formernbsp;exports to the latter vast quantities of opium, for the growth of whichnbsp;it possesses peculiar facilities, as it may be raised cheaper and better innbsp;Bengal than perhaps in any other part of the world, China affords anbsp;market almost unlimited in extent. India has to remit annually a certain amount of revenue to England, but the demand for Indian goods isnbsp;but small. The demand for tea in India is also very small, but innbsp;England it is enormous : therefore the East India Company and othersnbsp;purchase the tea of China (which has been partly paid for by the sale ofnbsp;their opium), and transmit it to England ; and thus maintain a mostnbsp;flourishing trade, and at the same time keep up their commercial relation with the parent country. India supplies us also with indigo, tobacco, and silk, and great quantities of raw cotton ; while Manchesternbsp;and Glasgow in return furnish a large proportion of the cotton piecenbsp;goods with which the inhabitants of India are clothed, as having nonbsp;advantages of machinery, the manufactures of India are carried on butnbsp;to a very small extent. India carries on a small trade with America innbsp;indigo, silk, and saltpetre, and a still smaller with France, which givesnbsp;her wine in return for these articles. The commerce of India withnbsp;Central Asia is limited by various causes, such as the heavy duties imposed by the Asiatic sovereigns, and the difficulties attending the conveyance of merchandize into these countries; Cabool is however a greatnbsp;consumer of Indian and British commodities ; and through it goods arenbsp;transmitted to Bokhara. The Chintzes of Masulipatam enjoy a preference in Persia, which ensures their sale in that country.*

We will now draw this portion of our remarks upon India to a close, by giving our readers a very brief account of the present history of thenbsp;East India Company, and its relations with this country, as settled bynbsp;recent Acts of Parliament.!

The present constitution of the East India Company and the government of India, as settled by Acts of Parliament, is this : the objects of the Company were originally purely commercial, and had they been ablenbsp;to maintain this character, they would have sought for nothing further.

These remarks are extracted from the same work already referred to, viz. Thornton�s � State of India.�

Their enemies compelled them to unite with the character of the merchant, that of the soldier, and the civil governor. The British Legislature has since elfected another change. In 1813, the trade with India was thrown open ; twenty years afterwards the Company relinquishednbsp;this field to their competitors. The Act of 1833 suspended the mercantile career of the Company, and it now exists only as an instrumentnbsp;for governing the country, which the spirit and wisdom of its servantsnbsp;(or rather, I should say, the good providence of God) has annexed tonbsp;the British Crown. The whole of the Company�s property, territorialnbsp;and commercial, having been surrendered, its debts and liabilities arenbsp;charged upon India, and a dividend of �10. 10s. on their capital stocknbsp;secured,�the dividend redeemable at the rate of �200 for every �100nbsp;stock after April 1874, and at an earlier period on the demand of thenbsp;Company, should they be deprived of the government of India, (whichnbsp;could not be done till the time of the expiration of this act, in 1854).nbsp;The authority of the Company is exercised through the Court of Proprietors, and the Court of Directors (subject to the supervision of thenbsp;commissioners of the Board of Control, which Board was established innbsp;17 84, for the purpose of superintending and controling Indian affairs).nbsp;The Court of Directors consists of twenty-four proprietors who arenbsp;elected for four years : six go out annually by rotation, but they are re-eligible at the expiration of a year. The qualification for the office ofnbsp;director is the possession of �2000 stock. To be qualified to vote innbsp;the Court of Proprietors, requires a possession of stock to the amountnbsp;of at least �1000. �3000 entitles him to two votes, �6000 to threenbsp;votes, and �10,000 to four votes. The proprietors have the privilegenbsp;of electing the directors�thirteen of whose number constitutes a court.nbsp;The Board of Control is constituted by commission under the Greatnbsp;Seal. The first named commissioner is president. The president of thenbsp;Council, the lord privy seal, the first lord of the treasury, the principalnbsp;secretaries of state, and the chancellor of the exchequer are commissioners ex officio. The directors are bound to transmit copies of all proceedings, and those of the Court of Proprietors to the Board of Control;nbsp;and copies of all despatches and official communications proposed to benbsp;sent out, must be laid before the commissioners, who within two monthsnbsp;are to return them, and to state their objections to them in writing.nbsp;Despatches generally originate with the Court of Directors ; but thenbsp;Board of Control may require orders and despatches to be proposed andnbsp;submitted for consideration. If the Court refuse compliance, after fourteen days the Board may prepare them themselves, and the directorsnbsp;are bound to transmit them.

An enlightened missionary, in his recently published account of the people of India, offers the following remarks : � The.Hindoos must benbsp;regarded in most respects as a civilized people, living in towns and exercising different trades and professions. The mountain tribes throughout India are an exception to this, for they are all, more or less, in anbsp;rude state, and in habits and manners, as well as religion, quite distinctnbsp;from the people of the plains. The Hindoos are upon the whole anbsp;handsome people, having generally an intelligent and expressive countenance, with a slender, graceful, and well-proportioned figure. It isnbsp;supposed they belong to the Caucasian race, from whence the Englishnbsp;and Germans also sprung. Their complexion is usually olive-brown,nbsp;but varies considerably in its shading, from the high-class natives whonbsp;are frequently not darker than Spaniards, to the people of the lowestnbsp;classes, who are almost as black as the negro. The greater part of thenbsp;inhabitants of India are employed in agriculture. The Hindoo husbandman is far less laborious and persevering than the English peasant ;nbsp;a like disposition for toil could scarcely be expected in a tropical climate ;nbsp;nor is it necessary, since the ground produces almost every thing withnbsp;little labour or exertion on the part of man. The primitive plough innbsp;use has perhaps seen no change for the last two thousand years, and isnbsp;drawn by a pair of small thin oxen, and cuts the ground two or three

inches in depth, below which the soil is never touched, yet the seed is sown and ripens year after year to an abundant harvest.

Besides agriculture and pasturage, the Hindoos are occupied in commerce, and handicrafts of different kinds : the most common artisans are the weaver, carpenter, blacksmith, confectioner, barber, washerman, andnbsp;basket-maker. In cotton-spinning and weaving the Hindoo had attainednbsp;to considerable perfection in ancient times. The men embroider mostnbsp;delicate silks and muslins with their thin taper fingers, and their carvingnbsp;in ivory is also very elaborate and beautiful. In towns there are clevernbsp;gold and silver smiths ; for the Hindoos, of both sexes, but especially thenbsp;females, are passionately fond of ornaments. They wear necklaces,nbsp;head-bands, ear-rings, and rings on their arms and ankles, as well asnbsp;on their noses ; and those who have not the means of procuring goldnbsp;and silver ornaments, purchase cheap ones of brass, bone, and paintednbsp;clay. The dress of the Hindoos is exceedingly simple ; it consists of anbsp;long piece of calico�sometimes eight or nine yards in length�commonly bleached white, which is fastened round the waist, just as itnbsp;comes from the loom. On festive occasions they cover the shouldersnbsp;with a similar garment, which is girt round their loins when they arenbsp;about to travel, or made into a turban to protect their heads from thenbsp;fierce rays of the sun. The dress of the servants in India and the middlenbsp;classes is an under garment of mushn hanging in folds below the knee,nbsp;and over this a dress of white country cloth, tight at the throat andnbsp;wrists, and sometimes confined at the waist with a red sash, while fifteen or twenty yards of mushn are twisted round the head for a turban.nbsp;The dress of the women consists of a piece of calico or muslin severalnbsp;yards in length, which is neatly and elegantly wound about the person,nbsp;so that it falls over the figure in graceful folds. They wear nothing onnbsp;their feet ; but their cloth usually reaches to the ankles, and they placenbsp;it over their heads when they go abroad, so that often only the uppernbsp;part of the face is visible. Some of the natives wear sandals of woodnbsp;or leather ; but only the higher classes have learnt to wear shoes. Thenbsp;dress of the rich Hindoos is made of silk or muslin of the finest texture,nbsp;and very beautifully embroidered. The Hindoos do not generally clothenbsp;their children till six or eight years of age. There are many rich farmers, designated zemindars, who rent whole districts from Government,nbsp;gather the heavy land tax, pay their own share, and yet derive considerable profit ; but this farming system is the curse of the poor peasant, who is so immercifully drained and oppressed by the cruel andnbsp;hard-hearted zemindars, that in a country so abundantly rich in naturalnbsp;resources as India, we find him living in abject wretchedness and pauperism, in a condition almost worse than that of a slave. The great and

melancholy feature of domestic life in India, is the degraded manner in which all females are treated. Among the higher classes, the womennbsp;have a separate apartment, and are at all times treated with less courtesy and respect than the youngest of their sons ; the Hindoo female isnbsp;represented in their sacred hooks as a lower order of beings to the men,nbsp;and this inhuman system occasions a total want of education in thenbsp;female part of the population, so that the entire family is left withoutnbsp;that maternal tenderness which education alone can promote ; and thenbsp;young Hindoo never having felt a mother�s influence, grows up destitutenbsp;of any moral qualities, or reflned feelings, and entirely ignorant of thenbsp;real happiness of domestic life. The writer of � South Indian Sketches�nbsp;observes, � that no one who has not lived and laboured among the Hindoos can have any idea of the state of deep degradation to which thenbsp;females of India are reduced. The young girls are married at the earlynbsp;age of thirteen or fourteen, and henceforth she becomes little more thannbsp;a domestic slave. She may not walk with her husband, but behindnbsp;him ; she may not eat with, but after him, and of what he leaves ; shenbsp;ought not to sleep while he is awake, nor remain awake while he isnbsp;asleep ; if she is sitting when he comes in, she must rise, and if henbsp;dies she is doomed to perpetual widowhood. This doom is her�s evennbsp;if the young man die between the betrothment and the marriage : anbsp;black cord is fastened round her neck, never to be removed, and thenbsp;girl is for ever shut out from all scenes of gladness or rejoicing ; she isnbsp;treated as an inferior being in her own family ; she must wear thenbsp;coarsest garments, and eat but once a day of the coarsest food. Thusnbsp;neglected and despised, with no interest in this hfe and no hope for anbsp;better, it is no wonder if these poor creatures throw off all restraint andnbsp;abandon themselves to a life of wickedness and sin.� *

Mr. Weitbrecht mentions, that � should a dog or a woman touch an idol, it is become, in their estimation, so polluted, that it must either benbsp;thrown away; or, if made of sohd material, it must be consecratednbsp;afresh ! � showing that they regard their females in no better lightnbsp;scarcely than the brute creation. In speaking of the women in anothernbsp;part of his work, he tells us, that the higher classes of females in Indianbsp;are for ever shut up between four walls, opening only to the light ofnbsp;heaven, on one side, which looks into a garden; that the lower classesnbsp;seldom hear the gospel, because it is not deemed proper that a womannbsp;should ever appear in company with her husband. The husband is thenbsp;head of the household, and the wife and mother forms no part of thenbsp;family circle. She is, in a certain sense, a nonentity, and is employed.

with her female children, in performing all the drudgery and hard work of the household. Notwithstanding, observes the same writer, all theirnbsp;great disadvantages, the females of India are by no means devoid ofnbsp;susceptibility to good impressions. � How sad is the contrast in regardnbsp;to women between a heathen and a Christian land ! In almost all heathen nations, the woman is regarded as an inferior species of humannbsp;being ! � *

The chief support and sustenance of the people of India is rice, though, in the southern districts, many of the people are too poor to obtain it,nbsp;and live on the fruit of the palm-trees, plantains, amp;c., which require littlenbsp;or no cultivation. The Hindoos have various modes of cooking theirnbsp;rice, but the most common way is boiling it soft in water, and eating itnbsp;with vegetables or fish, or a mixture of spices and oils made into a saucenbsp;called curry. Those who are of the Brahminical religion never eat beefnbsp;or veal, as the cow is considered by them a sacred animal ; but game,nbsp;goat�s-flesh, mutton, and other meats, are eaten by the upper classes.nbsp;The poor, in general, cannot afford ever to procure them. The Hindoosnbsp;use neither knives, forks, nor spoons, nor chairs or tables ; but bothnbsp;rich and poor sit cross-legged upon the floor, and feed themselves withnbsp;the fingers of the right hand, which is sacred, while the left hand isnbsp;regarded as the unclean hand.

The household furniture of the Hindoo peasant is extremely simple ; it consists merely of some earthen vessels for cooking, and perhaps anbsp;few brass plates and drinking-vessels ; but they more generally eat offnbsp;plates made of the fresh plantain leaves, which they gather daily. Anbsp;narrow-necked vessel for fetching water, a mat to sleep on at night, andnbsp;to rest, sit, and eat on during the day, a bamboo-basket for the preservation of their clothes, �c,, with a common wooden stool roughly putnbsp;together, completes the inventory of their furniture.! The upper classesnbsp;use beds made of bamboo, laced together with ropes, with a mat laid onnbsp;it, and then abed stuffed with coarse cotton, or the fibres of the cocoa-nut.nbsp;The rich Hindoo spends a great part of his time in repose. The houses ofnbsp;better classes of natives in Bengal are made of brick ; but it appearsnbsp;that, in Madras, the walls are usually of mud ; those of the middlingnbsp;classes consisting of four or five rooms opening into a little quadrangle.nbsp;The projecting tiled roofs, towards the street, form a kind of open shednbsp;called a piol, supported with posts in the front, having a bank of earthnbsp;running along the wall of the house, which is intended for a seat. Thenbsp;windows, which are about two feet square, only open towards the quadrangle ; and the absence of them towards the street gives the houses a

gloomy appearance. The rooms are low, and open to the roof, with hare white-washed walls, with no other ornaments than the little nichesnbsp;for their small brass or earthen lamps. In many towns the houses arenbsp;built of bamboo frames, covered with mats. The better kinds of housesnbsp;in India are built of two stories, the outer walls being sometimes ornamented with rude paintings of their gods. The lower classes of Hindoos live in miserable huts, the mud walls of which are not more thannbsp;two or three feet high, and the roof, which is composed of the leaves ofnbsp;the palmyra-palm, reaching nearly to the ground on the outside. Thenbsp;door-way is so low that it is not easy to stoop low enough to enter. Itnbsp;may be imagined that the closeness of even the best of these nativenbsp;houses must be almost insupportable in that hot climate ; nor is it easynbsp;to understand what reason they have for thus excluding both light andnbsp;air. But heat does not affect the Hindoo as it does the European. Thenbsp;hands of a native are always cool ; and you may often see the lowernbsp;classes of people lying down to sleep in the sun without suffering anynbsp;apparent inconvenience.

Many of the poor in India are not able to afford a house of their own, but live in the piols or open porticos in front of the dwellings of thenbsp;better classes, sheltering themselves with a screen of cocoa-nut leavesnbsp;or bamboos, without any furniture save a few chatties or earthen vessels,nbsp;in one of which they make a little fire to cook their food upon, and innbsp;another they keep their water and rice. The poverty of these miserablenbsp;people obliges them to eat whatever they can get,�as fish, dead animals,nbsp;or any kind of grain boiled soft ; but the higher classes are very particular in their diet, and any departure from the established custom,nbsp;relating to the manner in which their meals are served up, the numbernbsp;of dishes, amp;c., would occasion them loss of caste.*

The Hindoo, in his character, is strongly averse to any change, and the Mahometan is wrapped in a bigotry which almost precludes hisnbsp;seeing anything to admire in the habits and manners of an infidel ; yet,nbsp;notwithstanding this, the natives of India have begun, in some degree,nbsp;to conform to the tastes and customs of Europe. A very strong desirenbsp;has been manifested to become acquainted with the English language,nbsp;and the Hindoos are becoming anxious to acquire a knowledge of thosenbsp;sciences and branches of knowledge which enter into a school education.nbsp;They are very intelligent when instructed, and have excellent memories.nbsp;Those who are heathens are extremely fond of arguing. Of course,nbsp;among a nation inhabiting so very extensive and populous a country asnbsp;India, there are a great many varieties and different races among them,

and this is shown hy there being upwards of thirty different languages or dialects spoken in the different provinces. They differ materiallynbsp;from one another in religion, colour, manners and habits, as well asnbsp;language. Montgomery Martin gives a long list of these differentnbsp;classes or sects of Hindoos, characterising each by their appropriatenbsp;distinefive quality, such as�� Insidious, cruel, and talented Brahmins ;nbsp;submissive and industrious Soodras; warlike and cunning Mahrattas; high-spirited Rajpoots ; honest Parsees ; heroic Goorkas ; murdering Thugs ;nbsp;mercantile and quiet Armenians ; vindictive Nairs ; sedate Nestorians andnbsp;Syrians ; mercenary Scindians ; martial Seiks : fanatical Papists ; despoticnbsp;Polygars ; piratical Concanese ; * sanguinary and untamable Koolies ; pastoral Todawars ; f outcast Parias ; dissolute Moguls ; peaceful Telingarsnbsp;(or Teloogoos ? ) ; fighting Arabs ; commercial Loodanahs ; 1 and aboriginal Ghonds ; ��with many more varieties not mentioned here ; allnbsp;materially differing from each other in dialect, manners, and occupation.�

We will now say a few words on the moral state of Hindostan. It may be partly inferred from the foregoing list that this picture will provenbsp;but a dark one ; the following is the description of the moral characternbsp;of the Hindoos in general, given by one whose acquaintance with themnbsp;seems to have been considerable. || � Tliere is no virtue in which thenbsp;natives of India are more deficient, than a regard to truth. Veracity is,nbsp;in fact, almost unknown among them, and falsehood pervades the wholenbsp;intercourse of private life ; it is carried to such an extent in courts ofnbsp;law, that not only will two sets of witnesses give directly contrary testimony ; but not unfrequently it turns out, upon investigation, that neithernbsp;of them really knew anything of the matter in question. Even thosenbsp;who have a just cause will seek to defend it by falsehood and prevarication and trick ; deception and fraud are manifested in all their transactions of business. Trusts of the most solemn nature are often abused,nbsp;and even the ties of relationship afford no security whatever. Thenbsp;Hindoos are contentious, malevolent, and revengeful, and men pursuenbsp;each other with the most deadly enmity. It is true that when it suitsnbsp;their own interests, they can conceal their resentment, and submit to

Inhabiting the high lands of Coimbatoor. � People living in tents on the N.'.V. frontiers.

g Having a striking resemblance to the African negro, inhabiting the south parts of the peninsula.

II A Brahmin once said to a missionary, � I am sure your Scriptures are not so ancient as you pretend, for you have written one chapter since you came to this country.��nbsp;� Which is that?� asked the missionary. � Why the 1st of Romans,� said the Brahmin, � for you could never have written so exact a description of the Hindoos had younbsp;not first seen them.�

insult and injury with a great appearance of patient submission ; but the desire of revenge, though hidden, is active, and at the first favourablenbsp;opportunity will be indulged. Of all people, the Hindoos are the mostnbsp;prone to litigation. What they must have been before the estabhsh-ment of British authority and rule, when justice was notoriously boughtnbsp;and sold, may be easily inferred ; that is, in a worse state of misery thannbsp;they are now. Some people have thought the Hindoos kind to thenbsp;dumb creation, but the truth is far otherwise. Some animals which hisnbsp;unholy superstition teaches him are sacred, receive as much attentionnbsp;and respect as he would pay to the highest caste of his own species ;nbsp;but for this exception, the brute creation are treated in India with thenbsp;greatest cruelty.

� Of patriotism and public spirit the Hindoo knows nothing,� observes Mr. Weitbrecht. � Throughout the whole empire there is no place where they unite together for charitable purposes. The Maho-medan yoke under which the nations so long groaned, extinguished thenbsp;last vestige of patriotism in their breasts. It is only when an idol is tonbsp;be fabricated for the festival of one of their gods or goddesses, or whennbsp;hungry Brahmin priests are to be fed, that the whole population of anbsp;village must contribute each their share of the expense.�*

To his own species, observes Mr. Thornton, the Hindoo is invariably cold and unfeeling ; estranged from his feUow-men by the superstitiousnbsp;and galling system of caste, he regards human suffering with a callousnbsp;insensibility which is truly appalling. The following anecdote, relatednbsp;by Bishop Heber, will serve to explain this. � A traveller fell down sick,nbsp;a few days ago, in the streets of a village ; no one knew of what caste henbsp;was, so no one could go near him (lest they should be polluted, andnbsp;� lose caste � by touching one of a lower caste than himself) ; and therenbsp;he lay, wasting to death before the eyes of a whole community, andnbsp;even the children were allowed to pelt him with stones and mud. Innbsp;this state he was found by a European, and taken care of ; but had henbsp;died first, his body would have lain in the streets, till the jackal!s andnbsp;vultures carried it away, or have been thrown into the nearest river bynbsp;order of the magistrates.�

� In the time of famine (which occasionally occurs in India), the parent will sell her child without hesitation ; and a woman has beennbsp;seen, in a time of scarcity, to throw away her child upon the highroad.� t Infanticide was common among the Hindoos, until prohibitednbsp;by British law ; and the horrible practice of suttee, or the burning of

* See � Missions in Bengal,� p. 31. See Thornton's � State of India,� p. 134.

widows to death upon the deceased body of their husbands, has fallen before the same benign influence.

Besides all these dark qualities of the degraded minds of the poor Hindoos, India is disgraced by the gross impurity of her people, arisingnbsp;from the institutions of their false religion, which poisons the verynbsp;sources of all moral principle, and spreads itself into all the ramificationsnbsp;of social life. But we must close this sorrowful picture, and see, in thenbsp;next chapter what is the real source of all this sin and misery ; and innbsp;the concluding section of our subject, we hope to show that there is anbsp;ray of heavenly light beaming upon their darkened condition ; and thatnbsp;better days have already shone upon a portion, at least, of this benightednbsp;family of God�s creatures.

� Their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to he wise, theg became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptiblenbsp;man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things ; and worshipped andnbsp;served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.'quot; Rom. i.nbsp;21�25.

We propose to divide our subjects into six principal heads, viz. ;� 1. Their gods and goddesses. 2. Their religious festivals. 3. Thenbsp;superstitious institution called Caste. 4. Their habits of self-torturenbsp;and pilgrimage. 5. The sacred books and priests. 6. Their pagodasnbsp;and idol temples.

1. Their gods and goddesses, S�c.�The founders of Hindooism have reduced their millions of false gods, says Mr. Weitbrecht, to three principal deities. These beings are called Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva, whonbsp;have, in Hindoo mythology, each their appointed consorts, who are alsonbsp;worshipped. But besides these three principal gods, there are an uncounted host of deified heroes, animals, virtues, and vices. Brahma,nbsp;Vishnu, and Siva, they say, all emanated from Brahm, whom theynbsp;acknowledge as the one Supreme Being, the ground and foundation ofnbsp;their religion ; but although the Shasters represent Brahm as a beingnbsp;without beginning or end, almighty, omniscient, and unchangeable, yet,nbsp;at the same time, he is represented without mind, without will, with consciousness of his existence ! and is now, they say, enjoying the highestnbsp;beatitude�that is, a deep, uninterrupted sleep ! And yet Brahm mustnbsp;have one day awoke from this long sleep, in order to have called thenbsp;worlds into existence ; for Hindooism teaches that the creation of thenbsp;world is nothing more or less than a manifestation of Brahm in visiblenbsp;material forms. Hence their religion is the most perfect and complete system of Pantheism ever invented. Brahma, who is the first of the Hindoonbsp;Triad, and is regarded as the creator of the universe, is usually represented as a man with four faces, riding on a goose. He is, like Saturn,nbsp;sometimes called the grandfather of the gods ; but in other passages ofnbsp;the Shasters he is called the father of hes !

The writer of South Indian Sketches informs us that the Hindoo Brahma is little cared for, and that there is only one temple to hisnbsp;honour throughout all India. The Hindoo Shasters assert that whennbsp;he was convicted, by the other gods, of being a liar, he was condemnednbsp;to receive no divine adorations.*

The second person in the Hindoo Trinity is Vishnu. The preservation of the universe is. according to the Shasters, entrusted to his care. He is represented as a black man with four arms, riding upon a creaturenbsp;half-man, half-bird. He is thus depicted upon their temples ; but divinenbsp;homage is nowhere paid to him in this form. He is known and worshipped only in his different incarnations, which are numerous ; butnbsp;there is not a thought or idea in any one of them of a being acting innbsp;any way for the benefit or salvation of fallen man. The most popularnbsp;of these supposed incarnations is that of R�m, or Rama, a prince ofnbsp;Oude, who is said to have conquered Ceylon and a great part ofnbsp;Southern India. The name of R�m, twice repeated, is said to be anbsp;common form of salutation among all classes except the Brahmins.*nbsp;Another very popular incarnation of Vishnu, the writer of South Indiannbsp;Sketches informs us, is that of Krishna, under which name he is represented, in several forms, sometimes as a young man, or as a playful child.nbsp;His name, like that of R�m, may be traced in those of many towns andnbsp;villages, as Krishnagur and Ramnad. Krishna is the deity adopted bynbsp;millions of the Hindoos as their patron. In the history of his birth andnbsp;childhood, there is a slight resemblance to that of our blessed Saviournbsp;at Bethlehem ; and he is frequently represented as having a serpentnbsp;coiled round his body, from which he appears suffering, and likewise asnbsp;a conqueror, placing his right foot upon the serpent�s head.

The images of Siva represent him as a frightful being, sometimes with several heads, and sometimes with only one. He has three eyes, thenbsp;middle one of fire ; and the number of his hands vary from four tonbsp;thirty-two. He sits on a tiger�s skin, adorned with human skulls, hisnbsp;hair matted and dishevelled, and holding a trident in his hand. Henbsp;accepts animal sacrifices, and is propitiated by the self-inflicted torturesnbsp;of his votaries. The bull is sacred to him, and is a distinguished ornament of his temples.

Frightful, however, as is Siva, yet, says the writer of South Indian Sketches, he is even exceeded by his terrific wife. She is worshippednbsp;under several names and representations, the most popular of which arenbsp;Durga (or Dourga) and Kalee. Among all the false deities of India,nbsp;none receive more bloody sacrifices than the goddess Kalee. At the timenbsp;of her great festival, thousands of he-goats and buffaloes are slaughterednbsp;to propitiate her. Her image is ornamented with human heads andnbsp;skulls ; she is encircled with snakes, and of so horrible a form, that it isnbsp;scarcely possible to conceive how she could ever be an object of adora-

* The Hindoos have a poem detailing the heroic deeds of this god, and they are never tired of sitting to hear it recited to them.

tion to any people, did we not know, by Divine revelation, that men have become � vain in their imaginations,� having � their foolish heartsnbsp;darkened.�*

Inferior to these principal deities are several others, such as Surya, or the Sun ; Hunnaman, the Monkey God, usually painted on the outernbsp;walls of houses ; and Ganesa, the God of Wisdom or Learning, whosenbsp;iU-shapen human figure is surmounted with an elephant�s head : thisnbsp;deity is always placed at one end of the native heathen school-rooms,nbsp;and forms the subject of dedication to all thei� heathen books. Thenbsp;worshippers and votaries of all these deities are each distinguished bynbsp;different marks, made with a white composition, upon their foreheads,nbsp;arms, and breasts, which are renewed every morning before they tastenbsp;food. � The gods of the Hindoos,� says Mr. Thornton, � are representations of all the vices and crimes which degrade human nature ; andnbsp;there is no impurity nor villany, which does not receive countenancenbsp;from the example of some or other of them. Revenge as well as robbery, finds a kindred deity ; and cruelty, the never-failing companion ofnbsp;idolatry, is the very essence of the system.� Thus Brahma is represented as frequently quarrelling with his brothers ; and, in one of theirnbsp;disputes, has his head cut off by Siva ; while the favourite Krishna isnbsp;spoken of as an ingenious thief.

� Alas ! � observes a writer before quoted, � for these deluded people, whose very religion degrades their minds, and cherishes, instead of subduing, the natural evil of their hearts ! �

But besides these multitudes of idols of wood, and stone, and iron, and brass, and silver, and gold, the Hindoos deify the rivers and thenbsp;cataracts, and many other natural objects. If you ask the Hindoo hownbsp;he hopes to obtain forgiveness of his sins, he invariably points to thenbsp;river Ganges�this is his principal means of salvation. All the sects ofnbsp;the Hindoos, observes the author of � Missions in Bengal,� and � theirnbsp;name is legion,� are agreed in this, that when they meet on the banksnbsp;of this sacred river, they cease to strive, and look on each other as friends.nbsp;In courts of justice, witnesses are sworn by holding a bason of Gangesnbsp;water in their hands. To die on the banks of the Ganges is to dienbsp;happily, in the opinion of a Hindoo.

2dly. Their religious festivals.�The number of processions constantly to be met with in all parts of India�both heathen, Mahometan, and,nbsp;alas ! Roman Cathode�at once show the degraded and superstitious

* Kalce (the most terrible divinity of Hindooism) is represented as placing her right foot upon the chest of her husband Siva, who she threw down in a fit of anger. � Trulynbsp;says the apostle,� observes Mr. Weithrecht, what the Heathens sacrifice they sacrificenbsp;to devils.�

character of the religious creeds of this vast people. They vary according to the god or goddess in whose honour they are performed, and usually take place in the evening. They are attended with lightednbsp;torches and bands of music of the most noisy and discordant nature,nbsp;and are attended by throngs of people. The greatest excitement is saidnbsp;to prevail among them, and they form an imposing and a fearful scene.nbsp;There are two very popular processions, which are performed oncenbsp;a-year ; that of Juggernaut, whose car is drawn along by thousands ofnbsp;Hindoos, all holding the ropes by which it is propelled ; and its heavynbsp;enormous wheels crushing, as it moves slowly along, any unfortunatenbsp;victim who thus devotes himself to his cruel false God, who is seated innbsp;triumph above. The other is a procession in favour of Siva. Sometimes, in the presence of an immense concourse of people, priests, andnbsp;dancing-girls, and the beating of tom-toms, and the letting off of fireworks, they merely drag the senseless image of their god round a tank,nbsp;and then carry it back to the dark recess in its temple !

Once a-year the Mahometans have a grand procession in honour of Hossein the son of Ali ; for the Indian Mahometans, as well as thenbsp;Persians, are of the Schiite sect, and are followers of Ali, more than ofnbsp;Mahomet. It lasts ten days, during which time no work is done, butnbsp;processions are going about the streets night and day, carrying variousnbsp;figures, particularly a hand ; and attended by discordant bands of musicnbsp;and immense crowds of people.*

The same writer observes : � In many parts of the country you would hardly know a Roman Catholic from a heathen procession, unless yournbsp;eye happen to glance upon the crucifix, or the figure of the Virgin Mary,nbsp;carried aloft amidst the din and pageant ; and the images, pictures, andnbsp;relics, in the Roman Catholic chapels in India, are so numerous, as tonbsp;make them appear more like some ancient heathen shrine, than a placenbsp;set apart for the worship of Him who is to be � worshipped in Spiritnbsp;and in truth.� How grievous that the name of Christ should be thusnbsp;dishonoured among the heathen !�

Besides the heathen festivals already alluded to, as disgracing this beautiful land, and many more which we shall not have space to notice,nbsp;Mr. Weitbrecht tells us, of the annual festival in honour of the Hindoonbsp;idol goddess Kalee, at which the most revolting horrid self-inflictednbsp;tortures are perpetrated; the wild, shouting multitude repairing atnbsp;sunrise, to the great temple of Kalee-Ghaut, on the banks of the Ganges,nbsp;when the whole scene presented to view, Mr. W. observes, is such asnbsp;one might fancy devils to be transacting in the infernal regions. Apart

from these idolatrous and cruel rites is the swinging festival, of which doubtless most of my readers have seen pictures in the Church Missionary Quarterly papers and elsewhere. A reward of ten shillings,nbsp;and the hope of going into Shiva�s heaven, are, we are told, a sufficientnbsp;motive to the poor, despised Soodras to submit to this dreadful painnbsp;and torture. These devotees are swung round from a tree or post,nbsp;nearly thirty feet high, by means of a rope and iron hooks fastened intonbsp;the flesh of their hacks. The Government have at length prohibited thenbsp;erection of a swinging-tree in Calcutta. The annual festival in honournbsp;of the female deity Durga, takes place in September, and lasts a fortnight, Every rich Hindoo has a Durga prepared for himself, which isnbsp;set up either in his court-yard or hall, which is splendidly illuminated.nbsp;Every one is dressed in their best ; and feasting, and dancing, andnbsp;music, goes on in every house, while one noisy procession succeedsnbsp;another through the streets, bearing the image of the goddess with hernbsp;ten arms, and dressed in gaudy silks and gold, upon boards through thenbsp;town ; while, on the last day of the festival, the noisy multitude proceednbsp;to the river�s brink, and throw the images that have been thus worshipped for the previous ten days into the water ! A converted Brahminnbsp;once told the missionary, Mr. Weitbrecht, that the sums annually expended upon the idol-festivals in India, exceed the incomes of all thenbsp;Bible and Missionary Societies in Great Britain.

We now come to speak, 3rdly, of that peculiar feature of Hindooism, caste. This is a religious distinction, dividing the people into four principal classes or castes, which are again divided and subdivided into numberless other minor sects. The four principal classes are the Brahmins,nbsp;or priests; the Cshatryas (or Ksetteryos), i. e. the military caste ; thenbsp;Vaisyas (or Vyasas), the merchants,* and the Soodras, or labourersnbsp;and artisans (which last are the most numerous of any). Besides these,nbsp;there are a great number of outcasts (or � Pariars,� as they are called, andnbsp;sometimes � low-caste people�), who have been expelled from any of thenbsp;foregoing castes, from having violated one or other of those minutenbsp;observances which are deemed necessary to preserve caste. These poornbsp;creatures are denied almost the most common rights of humanity : theirnbsp;own relations will not go near them ; and if they even touch the smallest thing belonging to any other caste, it becomes polluted. They arenbsp;in fact an excommunicated race. Tlie distinctions of caste are hereditary,nbsp;and every man must follow the trade and occupation of his father beforenbsp;him. Mr. Weitbrecht observes, in his Missions in Bengal, � The Hindoo considers caste as the sum and substance, the life and marrow of

his religion, thus the nation is tom asunder into shreds, one caste considering the other as impure, while the wily Brahmin has united them all under the hond of a blind superstition ; and the European is considered as the most impure of all, ranking in the estimation of the Hindoos, far below the meanest of the Soodras, and they are honoured by anbsp;a Sanscrit appellation signifying the off-scouring of the human race.nbsp;No Hindoo may break through the sects or divisions into which societynbsp;is thus split, and no industry or talents can ever raise a man above thenbsp;condition in which he was born ; the son of a merchant must be a merchant, however disagreeable to him ; the son of a Brahmin, or priest,nbsp;must be a priest, however unfit for the office ; and even the son of thenbsp;barber or the washerman, must be a barber or washerman, or starve.nbsp;The different castes will not eat in the sight of each other, nor touchnbsp;each other�s persons or clothes, nor will they take food or even touchnbsp;a plate or drinking vessel that has passed through the hands of one ofnbsp;inferior caste ; and not even public or private danger, nor any dreadfulnbsp;visitation or calamity sent by Divine Providence will be sufficient tonbsp;break the chain which Satan has thus wound around them, or subduenbsp;the power of this monstrous destroyer of all human sympathy or kindlynbsp;feeling. Often after the heathen has become a Christian, he cannot benbsp;prevailed upon entirely to give up his notions of caste, so strongly is itnbsp;interwoven with their thoughts. It is evident that this deep-rootednbsp;superstitious institution of caste must form one of the greatest possiblenbsp;hindrances to religious improvement : for, says the Hindoo, � If I donbsp;profess Christianity, I shall lose caste ; my family and friends will despise and forsake me ; my wife will leave me, and my children nonbsp;longer acknowledge me,�the thought of which makes me tremble.�nbsp;In framing their false system, Satan was too wise to leave it to be upheld merely by the craft of the priests, and therefore he connected itnbsp;with rank and honour, and with conjugal and parental ties, so that theynbsp;who forsake Brahminism, must indeed � forsake father and mother, wifenbsp;and children, brothers and sisters for Christ�s sake.� But missionariesnbsp;state that it is not altogether quite so strictly observed throughout thenbsp;land as it used to be, for boys will now meet together and eat togethernbsp;in the same school-room who are of diiferent castes, which was nevernbsp;the case when first religious education was undertaken by Europeansnbsp;among the Hindoos.

Our 4th proposed division of this subject was the self-torture and pilgrimages of the Hindoo religion. The first of these has already been touched upon in speaking of the swinging-festival, but numberless arenbsp;the acts of cruelty and barbarous inflictions which the poor Hindoonbsp;practices upon himself to jdease or appease his false gods, and the con-

templation of them even at a distance, often makes the Christian shudder ; hut still the pain they undergo in this life, is nothing compared with the agonies of that � worm that dieth not, and, the fire thatnbsp;never shall be quenched.� How should we then seek and strive afternbsp;we have ourselves known Jesus as our Saviour and Redeemer, to pluck,nbsp;if we can, even but one single soul from the burning ! The Scripturesnbsp;say, � The dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty,�nbsp;and so it is with the Hindoos. They will lie upon beds filled with ironnbsp;spikes, and run spikes through their flesh, and cut and lacerate theirnbsp;tongues, and walk barefoot on hot coals, and a thousand other acts ofnbsp;self-torture they will perform as meritorious deeds, and with a view ofnbsp;exalting themselves in the eyes of an ignorant and deluded populace ;nbsp;and numerous stories are told by missionaries of the long and wearynbsp;pilgrimages which these mistaken devotees of Hindooism will often perform through the length and breadth of their benighted land, beforenbsp;they can find any peace or rest to their souls. Indeed they often dienbsp;by the road-side while performing a pilgrimage ; for they will walknbsp;thousands of miles if they think they can by any chance purchasenbsp;heaven by such an act of self-devotion.

It now remains for us in the 5 th place to speak of their priests and sacred books, and in doing this we shall again take the liberty of quotingnbsp;from the missionary Mr. Weitbrecht�s valuable little work on � Missionsnbsp;in Bengal.� The main object of Hindooism is the exaltation of thenbsp;Brahmins, or priests. As he passes by, his blessing is supplicated bynbsp;the poor despised Soodra, who prostrates himself before him in thenbsp;street, touching the ground three times with his forehead, while henbsp;takes hold with his right hand of the foot of the deified priest in ordernbsp;to kiss it ! The whole demeanour of the Brahmin is proud and insolent,nbsp;and intended to give an impression of his greatness and importance.nbsp;How totally the reverse of the meek and lowly Jesus when he was uponnbsp;earth, though King of kings, and Lord of lords ! A Brahmin plays thenbsp;chief part in every Hindoo village ; he is the lord of the country : thenbsp;conscience and intellect of the people are in his hands. He opensnbsp;heaven or.condemns to hell. His is a universal dominion in the fullestnbsp;sense.� *

All the offerings the Hindoo offers to his false God fall, as a matter of course, to the Brahmin. He that feeds them is entitled to all thenbsp;blessedness of heaven ; and he who should pay him the slightest disrespect is doomed to the greatest degradation after death. He is the firstnbsp;at the court of the Rajah, and likes to live on the best and fattest of the

land ; for in the western provinces of Bengal where forests abound, and the ground is not so much cultivated, they are rarely to be found. Thenbsp;wealth or temporal condition of a village in India may always be calculated from the number of lazy priests the inhabitants are capable of supporting. But what is their character ? Alas for India ! they are totallynbsp;destitute of any reaTexcellency ! Mr. Weitbrecht says, � Thus much Inbsp;may safely assert, that of aU India�s degraded and demoralised sons, thenbsp;Brahmin is the most deeply sunk and debased.� The Hindoo sacrednbsp;books they call Shasters. These are written in the Sanscrit, wliich isnbsp;now a dead language to the people, and indeed to some of the priestsnbsp;too ; they contain a mixture of false and absurd fables, and histories ofnbsp;their deities, maxims, and proverbs, and directions for puerile and useless rehgious observances. � God,� says Mr. Weitbrecht,� is by thenbsp;teaching of the Vedas, the author of all evil. Should the missionarynbsp;enquire, � How can He, being a holy and pure Being, do evil ! � Thenbsp;Brahmin answers with a triumphant air, � That which is sin with man,nbsp;is nothing of the kind with the gods ; they have the privilege to do asnbsp;they please : nor are they to be judged according to a human standard.�nbsp;W�hen they hear of the miracles of our blessed Saviour, they say, � Ournbsp;gods have performed much greater ones than these. Krishna, for instance, took up a mountain with the tip of his finger, and protected thenbsp;shepherds in the field from a fearful hailstorm ; and one of our godsnbsp;drank all the water of the ocean at a draught, with all its contents ofnbsp;fish and living beings.� The gods of the Hindoos are described innbsp;their Shasters as fearful monsters, delighting in immorality : � � and thenbsp;heavens inhabited by them,� says Mr. Weitbrecht, � are polluted withnbsp;crimes which no tongue can utter.� The Hindoos have become whatnbsp;they are by following the examples set before them in the impiousnbsp;and extravagant histories of their false gods contained in their sacrednbsp;books.

6thly, and lastly, we will briefly mention the idolatrous temples and places of worship of the Hindoos. These are very numerous, and ofnbsp;various descriptions, from the proud and lofty pagoda all covered withnbsp;carving and gold, and of the most elaborate workmanship, to the smallnbsp;shrine just large enough to hold the senseless idol worshipped by thenbsp;poor and despised of the land, or the local divinity of the place. Everynbsp;village has its temple, and often two or three. Vast sums of money arenbsp;paid by rich Hindoos to keep up the splendid temples with their extensive tanks and courts, on the banks of the sacred Ganges ; and thesenbsp;are usually adorned with frightful images of their horrible gods andnbsp;goddesses on the outside. My readers will find representations of manynbsp;of the pagodas of British India in the quarterly papers of the Church

Missionary Society, which also give descriptions of these edifices. The room in which the idol is placed is usually not more than ten or twelvenbsp;feet square. They are generally surrounded with mango or tamarindnbsp;trees, under which the natives are seen sitting smoking their hookahs,nbsp;or conversing on the events of the day. Nothing is so meritorious asnbsp;the act of building a temple, especially if on the hanks of the Ganges.nbsp;In the city of Benares are 900 Shiva temples. Wealthy rajahs havenbsp;endowed some idol temples in a most magnificent manner. The templenbsp;of Juggernauth in Orissa is said to possess an mcome of ten thousandnbsp;pounds annually.* The Hindoo temples are not intended for any actsnbsp;of social or public worship. No prayer or praise is ever heard in them,nbsp;nor instruction ever given from their walls. The solitary priest alonenbsp;performs the daily worship, in a cold and lifeless manner, in a languagenbsp;he does not understand, before a senseless idol of clay or stone, whilenbsp;the crowd upon festival days, assembles before the temple ; but it isnbsp;not for any act of worship, but to enjoy the idolatrous rites and filthynbsp;ceremonies, in which so much of wickedness is mixed up, that the missionaries refrain even from mentioning them.

The religion of the bulk of the people in the districts of Tinnevelly and Madura, (in Southern India), differs materially from Brahminism.nbsp;In these two provinces the worship of Vishnu and Siva is confined tonbsp;the Brahmins, or high caste Hindoos ; but the lower classes are composed of two distinct races of men called Maravers, which word signifiesnbsp;�thief,� and Shanars, or �climbers� of the palm-tree, who are directnbsp;and avowed worshippers of the Evil Spirit ; and their religion is preeminently one of fear and terror. According to the account given of itnbsp;in � South Indian Sketches,� it is called � Rei-Arad�nai � (or devil-worship) ; and the places where this hateful worship is performed, arenbsp;called �Rei-cails� (or devil-temples). No village in Tinnevelly isnbsp;without one of them, and some have four or five. One in Mr. Blackman�s district (which has now been pulled down by its former worshippers) was thirty feet square, and enclosed about fifty idols, of differentnbsp;forms and sizes. At its destruction, these idols were broken in piecesnbsp;and used among other stones for building a Christian house of prayer.nbsp;The feature which more particularly distinguishes this form of heathennbsp;worship from the Brahminical, is the offering of animal sacrifices (whereasnbsp;Hindoo offerings are generally fruits, grain, oil, amp;c.) Buffaloes, sheep,nbsp;pigs, and goats are used in sacrifice by the devil-worshippers ; and theynbsp;slaughter vast numbers at their festivals, which are generally held whennbsp;they are in fear of some impending calamity, as famine, sickness, amp;c.

This worship of the devil with its horrid and disgusting rites and dances, is practised in Ceylon ; but in no part of Hindoostan it is beheved, except the two provinces above-mentioned,*

And now, my readers, one word in reflecting upon this sad history which I have attempted (very briefly and imperfectly, I know) to bringnbsp;before you. What makes us to differ from these poor degraded Hindoos ? Is it not the glorious light of the Gospel.? Is it not the knowledge of the One True God, and of � Jesus Christ whom he has sent,�nbsp;�given unto us by the Holy Spirit ? Is it not the possession of thenbsp;Bible ? that blessed revelation of God�s will to man, which is spreadnbsp;through the length and breadth of our happy favoured land ! Then,nbsp;let us not quench that Light by our careless indifference to God, butnbsp;let us pray henceforth more earnestly than we ever have yet done, thatnbsp;� his truth may be known upon earth, his saving health among all nations,� and that he will take away the veil from the hearts of thosenbsp;among us who know not his Son Jesus Christ, that we henceforth despise not these our great and inestimable privileges.

� where sin abounded^ grace did much more abound ; that as sin hath reigned unto deaths even so might grace reign through rigldeozisness unto eternal U/'e by Jesus Ohristnbsp;our Lordy Rom. v. 20, 21.

is the disputer of this world ? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world ? For after that in the wisdom of God^ the world by wisdom hnew not God y itnbsp;pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believed^

We are now arrived at by far the most pleasing part of our view of idolatrous India ; for though the fruit has in God�s good providencenbsp;hitherto been but scanty, yet the seed has been sown, and has broughtnbsp;forth,�as all published missionary accounts will amply testify,�and wenbsp;recommend our readers to peruse these accounts more steadily thannbsp;they perhaps have yet done ; for the mind of the Christian cannot failnbsp;of being at once elevated and softened by such affected and deeply-interesting details as the � Missionary Register,� and other valuable periodical publications, present to our view. We shall there see, that thoughnbsp;the misionary�s task is a tedious, a laborious, and a trying one, yet, thatnbsp;he has moments of joy, which no man can take away from him, and fornbsp;the sake of which he would not renounce one of his trials or difficulties,nbsp;�and that God vouchsafes his blessings upon his labours often in anbsp;most marvellous manner.

The first Protestant missionary to benighted India was Benjamin Ziegenbalg, a German Lutheran from the city of Halle, in Saxony, whonbsp;was sent in 1705 by Frederick IV., King of Denmark, to Tranquebar,nbsp;on the Coromandel coast, at that time a Danish colony ; he, with his successors Grundier, Gerike, and others, did much to introduce the Protestant religion into the kingdom of Tanjore ; and in patience andnbsp;labours they were worthy to be compared to the apostles of old. Innbsp;1715 we find them fully engaged in preaching the Word in the Tamulnbsp;language, into which the New Testament had been translated ; and theynbsp;had formed as many as twenty-four schools in this heathen district.*

The Rev. Christian Frederick Schwartz was sent out in 1750 by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. This truly pious mannbsp;laboured unremittingly either at Tranquebar. Trichinopoly, or Tanjore, till the year of his death, which took place in 1798. He employednbsp;several native preachers, and witnessed the conversion of many heathen ;nbsp;�a short abridgement of his deeply interesting life is published by thenbsp;Religious Tract Society, and shows what persevering efforts, accompanbsp;nied by the grace of Almighty God, can and will accomplish. Mr. Kol-

hoff succeeded the venerable Schwartz in the Tanjore mission in 1801, and has only lately departed to his rest. The Christian congregationsnbsp;in Tanjore, in 1816, amounted to 1500 natives, and in the neighbouringnbsp;country to about 1000 more. Bishop Heber visited these interestingnbsp;flocks in 1826 : his words were (in committing the Tanjore mission tonbsp;the care and support of the Committee of the Christian Knowledgenbsp;Society)��Here is the strength of the Christian cause in India'; itnbsp;would indeed be a grievous and heavy sin if England, and all the agentsnbsp;of its bounty, do. not nourish and protect these churches.� A shortnbsp;time before this (in 1820) the superintendance of these missions hadnbsp;been transferred from the Christian Knowledge Society, to the Societynbsp;for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.

In Be-ngal, the first European missionary was the Rev. J. Kiernander,* sent out by the Christian Knowledge Society in 1766 ; he was succeeded in 1793 by the learned and celebrated Dr. Carey of the Baptistnbsp;persuasion, who, after between thirty and forty years� labour, enterednbsp;into the joy of his Lord. � He undertook,� says Mr. Weitbrecht, � thenbsp;herculean labour of translating the Holy Scriptures into the various languages of India ; and to the surprize of all who were acquainted withnbsp;the arduousness of the task, in a great measure carried out the stupendous work.� Of Dr. Carey, Wilberforce remarked, �A sublimer thoughtnbsp;cannot be conceived than that, when a poor cobler formed the resolutionnbsp;to give to the millions of Hindoos the Bible in their own language.�

It was in 1815 that the Church Missionary Society first established regular stations in Southern India, though it had for several years previously promoted the cause of missions in that country. The devotednbsp;missionary, Rhenius, and the late Mr. Norton of Aleppie, were amongnbsp;the first labourers employed in this vineyard. The Church Missionarynbsp;Society stations in 1816, were Madras, in the south, and Agra, BarciUy,nbsp;and Benares, in the Bengal Presidency. At Agra, their missionary wasnbsp;Abdool Messeeh (which signifies the-� Servant of Christ�), one of the firstnbsp;converts from the Mahometan faith in India, whose history is extremelynbsp;interesting. He had been a soldier, and afterwards filled a high stationnbsp;in the court of the King of Oude. He was led to visit the city of Cawn-pore in 1810, when the Rev. Henry Martyn, being chaplain of thatnbsp;station, was accustomed every Sunday afternoon to address some wordsnbsp;of Christian exhortation to the poor who assembled before his door tonbsp;receive alms ; and also many who needed not alms, went for curiositynbsp;to hear the Christian preacher. The bigoted Mussulman went onenbsp;Sunday, as he himself afterwards expressed it, � to see the sport ;� the

* His church in Calcutta -was for thirty years the only place of Protestant worship in Bengal. See Williams�s � Missionary Gazeteer,� published in 18211, p. 122.

impression made on his mind was deep and lasting, and his heart gradually opened to the truth, being more fully convinced by the perusal of the Persian Scriptures, which he was soon after engaged by Mr. Martynnbsp;to transcribe, and afterwards to bind. He was baptized in 1811 by thenbsp;Rev. David Brown, chaplain at Calcutta, and was engaged as a catechist by the Church Missionary Society the following year. He gavenbsp;up a very lucrative employment at Lucknow, to receive a salary of aboutnbsp;sixty pounds a year ; and as Bishop Heber observed when he saw himnbsp;at Agra in 1825, � Who ever dare say that this maa has changed hisnbsp;faith from interested motives ! � His death took place in 1827. Onenbsp;of the Church Missionary quarterly papers for 1831, represent him anbsp;simple and sincere servant of Christ, humble, faithful and stedfast in hisnbsp;Christian course. Several other Mahometans were converted throughnbsp;his instrumentality in India ; and we find six of his brethren employednbsp;as catechists in 1816, by the Church Missionary Society, who, this yearnbsp;also, commenced missionary operations in Calcutta. In 1822, the services of Miss Cooke (afterwards Mrs. Wilson) were engaged by thenbsp;Chur�h Missionary Society, and eight schools for Hindoo females werenbsp;shortly established, and in 1828 there were 500 girls under instruction.nbsp;The following year (1823) the Ladies Society was formed, and thenbsp;Central Female School commenced. The Orphan Refuge (situate anbsp;short distance from Calcutta) was commenced in 1833, under Mrs. Wilson : it now alFords Christian instruction in Bengalee, Hinduwee, andnbsp;English, to poor Hindoo female orphans. There seems to have beennbsp;great interest excited in the cause of education at Calcutta, at a verynbsp;early period of the Church Missionary Society�s operations there, andnbsp;numerous local societies were established in that city, who were instrumental in maintaining a number of native schools for both sexes. Alsonbsp;at Burdwan (fifty miles north of Calcutta), and at Benares, large schoolsnbsp;were early established, under the auspices of the Church Missionarynbsp;Society.

Bishop�s College at Calcutta was founded under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in 1820 : its objects are tonbsp;prepare native and Christian youths to become preachers, catechists,nbsp;and school-masters. In 1816, a Hindoo college was founded. Thisnbsp;institution is remarkable as being the first that was projected by thenbsp;natives, for the instruction of their sons in the English and Indian languages, and in general literature and science. The Government have another Hindoo college, which is distinct from this (for teaching Europeansnbsp;the Sanscrit and other languages) founded by the late Marquis Wellesley.

It will be seen, by consulting the Statistical table at the end of this chapter, that there are not fifty missionaries employed at this time (1844) in

Bengal (among these millions of idolaters), belonging to the two Church of England Societies,�� And what are they among so many ? � are wenbsp;not inclined to cry out ? It is true this is independent of a large bodynbsp;of catechists and school-teachers ;�� the harvest truly is plenteous, butnbsp;the labourers are few.�

Mr, Weitbrecht thus describes the occupations of the missionary in Bengal :�� In towns such as Calcutta, Benares, and Burdwan, the missionaries have erected chapels in the most frequented parts. The wallsnbsp;of these buildings are of bamboo and brickwork, or sometimes only ofnbsp;mat, with a thatched roof. The hour in the morning after sun-rise, andnbsp;the evening hour after sun-set, are chosen for preaching ; for, from ninenbsp;to five, owing to the heat, any public speaking is hardly practicable.nbsp;The discourses of the Missionary are frequently interrupted by thenbsp;opposing arguing Brahmins, and the audience is not fixed and stationarynbsp;during the sermon, as in England, but is continually changing ; as theynbsp;leave the church if what they hear is not palateable to them. Besidesnbsp;preaching in chapels and schools, the missionary visits their idolatrousnbsp;festivals, and goes into the villages and bazaars in the evening, when thenbsp;natives assemble on the steps of their idol-temples ; or in the morning,nbsp;when they are going in crowds to the river to bathe ; or sits and converses with them at the entrances to their cottages, where they are muchnbsp;in the habit of smoking and talking : and, during the cold season, fromnbsp;November to February, they make excursions to the more distant partsnbsp;of the country, and preach the gospel from village to village, distributingnbsp;as they go, thousands of tracts and portions of the scriptures. Medicalnbsp;and surgical knowledge are of great use and importance to the missionary in his labours ; as the villagers often bring people afflicted withnbsp;disease to him, and ask him to cure them, who can take this opportunitynbsp;to recommend to them the great � Physician of souls,� who is both ablenbsp;and willing to cure that greatest of all diseases from which all bodilynbsp;sufferings have originated. It has been said that the missionary innbsp;India has no access to the houses and families of the natives, especiallynbsp;among the upper classes ; but there are exceptions to this. It is true anbsp;friendly intercourse of this kind is by no means general. Their pridenbsp;and the iron bonds of caste are insuperable barriers to it. But prejudicesnbsp;are giving way ; and if we embrace opportunities as they present themselves, it is sure that the Lord will open to us one door of entrance afternbsp;another. The missionaries who have occasionally returned to Englandnbsp;for a short visit, have told us that idolatiy is decreasing throughoutnbsp;the whole of India, and that the great idol-festivals are not so numerously attended as they used to be when they first went out ; that verynbsp;few new temples are being erected, while many of the old ones are

going to decay. There was a large Juggemaut-car near Burdwan, covered over with the most horrible and disgusting figures of idolsnbsp;carved in wood : the Brahmins lately refused to take the repair of itnbsp;upon themselves, and the people would not come forward to help them,nbsp;so it has gone to decay, and the villagers have told the missionary there,nbsp;� The idol has taken his leave ; he no longer liked this neighbourhood.�nbsp;Within the last five years great numbers of Hindoos and Mahometansnbsp;have been baptized in a district upon the Ganges, not far from Calcutta,nbsp;called Krishnagur. In some sixty villages, five missionaries have nownbsp;three or four thousand Christian natives under their pastoral care, withnbsp;each a chapel and a school ; and the heathens around them are becomingnbsp;acquainted with Christianity, and coming to attend the worship of Godnbsp;in the chapels. This wonderful movement seems to have been in somenbsp;measure hastened by the fact, that some years ago there arose a sect ofnbsp;Hindoos in these parts, called Khurta Bojahs, or � worshippers of the onlynbsp;God ; � the founder of which, it is said, became acquainted with the Holynbsp;Scriptures by means of one of our first Protestant missionaries, Carey,nbsp;or Foster, or Thomas. This sect numbers at present many hundrednbsp;thousands, Hindoos, Mahometans, Indo-Britons, and Portuguese. Theynbsp;have rejected the worship of idols, and substituted that of the onlv truenbsp;God as the foundation of their system. They meet once a-week, afternbsp;sunset, and sing hymns in praise of their Creator, sitting cross-leggednbsp;upon the floor, at which time all distinctions of caste ceases�the Brahmin being seen seated by the side of the Soodra and the Mahometan.�nbsp;Mr. Weitbrecht observes, the people of this sect may be destined, innbsp;the good providence of God, to become the pioneers to our mission-worknbsp;in Bengal.*

The orphans� schools for both sexes at Benares and Burdwan are very interesting spheres of usefulness, and, since their commencement,nbsp;have educated in the knowledge of the Christian religion some thousands of Hindoo youths. When Lord William Bentinck was governornbsp;of India, an order was issued that educated Hindoos and Mahometans,nbsp;who understood English as well as their own language, should be admitted to various lucrative offices and appointments under the Britishnbsp;government. This induced the wealthy and bigotted Brahmins to sendnbsp;their sons to our schools, even at the risk of their conversion ; for Christian principles and the Bible are made the basis of instruction at all ournbsp;mission-schools, of which the parents are perfectly well aware.

But before we turn from Calcutta and Bengal, to speak of mission labour in the southern provinces of India, we must say a few wordsnbsp;upon the admirable institutions for education in Calcutta, set on foot by

the celebrated Dr. Duff and his associates of the Scotch mission. It appears that Dr. Duff was appointed head-master of the mission-schoolnbsp;established by the Church of Scotland Missionary Society, in 1830; and,nbsp;in 1831, he had 240 boys under his care, and established a course ofnbsp;lectures upon the evidences of Christianity, for all such young, well-educated Hindoos as might hke to attend. His efforts were, at first,nbsp;mainly directed to counteract the pernicious effects of the system ofnbsp;education set up by the Government Hindoo college, where religiousnbsp;knowledge was excluded. In 1835, he had 400 pupils, and, in 1843,nbsp;800, assembled at the annual examination. � His plan,� says Mr.nbsp;Weitbrecht, � unites science with Christianity, and aims chiefly at thenbsp;intellectual improvement of the scholars. Truly it is a heart-cheeringnbsp;sight to see eight hundred boys, more than half of whom are Brahmins,nbsp;assembled under one roof, answering questions upon mathematics,nbsp;natural philosophy, history, and the Christian religion, with the greatestnbsp;readiness and precision.� * The Missionary Register for 1834 states,nbsp;that � the conversion of several members of the Hindoo College hasnbsp;been the result of these labours.�

The London Missionary Society entered the field in this benighted quarter of the world as early as the year 1804. They established anbsp;printing-press at Nagercoil, in Southern India, and at Vizigapatam ;nbsp;at which latter place they had translated the chief part of the Scriptures,nbsp;and several selections of hymns and tracts in the Teloogoo language,nbsp;before 1825. Their schools were numerous in Southern India, and atnbsp;Vizagapatam (amongst the Teloogoos), at Bellary, Quilon, Bangalore,nbsp;and Surat. The statistical table, at the close of this chapter, will shownbsp;the different stations of this society in Bengal, as well as those of thenbsp;Baptists, Scotch Church, and American Missionary Societies.

We now pass on to the missionary labours of our own Church in Southern India., of which we will give a very brief outline history,nbsp;chiefly extracted from the work before quoted, called � South Indiannbsp;Sketches.�

Twenty-five years ago, Tinnevelly was full of idols ; 2700 pagodas and 10,000 demon-temples defiled the land, the population of whichnbsp;has been computed at 700,000 ; and all was darkness, except the fewnbsp;remaining rays of light that glimmered here and there in some villages,nbsp;under the care of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.. At Palamcotta a church had been built, after the death ofnbsp;Schwartz, in 1798, and a congregation of two hundred had been collected; and the Rev. James Hough, for many years previously, hadnbsp;been its indefatigable chaplain, and had established several schools in

the district, when the Church Missionary Society sent Messrs. Rhenius and Schmidt to this station in 1820, since which time the labours of anbsp;very small number of missionaries have been greatly blessed. In connexion with this society there are now 6,600 baptized natives, andnbsp;14,000 others, who have renounced their idols, and submitted to the instruction and discipline of our Church.* There is a great deal of opposition manifested towards the Christian converts, particularly by thenbsp;zemindars. The number of missionaries is so very small, in proportionnbsp;to the people under their care, that few of the congregations can benbsp;visited by them more than three or four times a-year. In the meannbsp;time each village is under the care of one or more catechists, who arenbsp;all assembled together by the missionary once every month, for thenbsp;purpose of being instructed, and giving in the reports of their severalnbsp;districts. This meeting occupies two or three days, and always includesnbsp;a Sunday, when the Lord�s Supper is administered.

In 1840, the first attempt was made by the natives to establish a Church-building Fund, and it was entered into entirely of their ownnbsp;accord. The principle of this little society is, that every person capablenbsp;of working is to give the best day's income of the whole year to the fund,nbsp;and as much more as he pleases. Their first church has already risen,nbsp;and is a plain neat structure, large enough to accommodate a hundrednbsp;persons. Many years ago, in the time of the Rev. Charles Rhenius, anbsp;society was formed in TinneveUy, called the Native Philanthropicnbsp;Society whose chief object was to purchase land, on which to buildnbsp;Christian villages, where the converts might be sheltered from thenbsp;violence and persecution of their heathen neighbours, and also benbsp;brought more within reach of regular instruction and superintendance.nbsp;This plan was originally introduced by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. Their stations�Moodaloor and Nazareth�are bothnbsp;of this description of village. As many as forty of these little � citiesnbsp;of refuge � have risen up in the TinneveUy district under this society ;nbsp;and the first so built was Kadatchapuram (or the village of love'), wherenbsp;the Rev. C. Blackman has built a neat church, capable of holding sixnbsp;hundred persons ; the natives having greatly assisted ; giving out of theirnbsp;own substance, in its erection, a fortnight�s hard earnings. The Pilgrimnbsp;Society sprang up among the people themselves, without the knowledgenbsp;or assistance of any of the missionaries. Its object is to send teachersnbsp;into distant villages who had never yet heard the truth, to declare the

* This was written in 1844. The numbers of those who are coming over to the true faith in TinneveUy arc daily fast increasing, as appears by the accounts sent home bynbsp;the Rev. .1. Tucker, Corresponding Secretary to the Church Missionary Society atnbsp;Madras.

word of God amongst them, and distribute tracts and copies of the scriptures. This was brought about, under Providence, by a sentencenbsp;from a sermon of the late Rev. C. Rhenius.

The natural acuteness of the native mind gives the Hindoo catechists much readiness in their arguments with their opposers and fellow-countrymen, as is shown by the following anecdote. A heathen, in anbsp;cavilling spirit, asked one of these native teachers, how he could knownbsp;that the Christian religion was better than their own ? � If I bring you,�nbsp;said the reader, � two dishes of plantains, how do you know which is thenbsp;best?� �By tasting them, of course,� replied the heathen. �Justnbsp;so,� resumed the reader, � I have known by tasting ; for I was anbsp;heathen, and am now a Christian. Do you also � taste and see.� �

The first female boarding-school established by the Church Missionary Society, was at Palamcottah, and was placed under the care of Mrs.nbsp;Schnarre, in 1823. The circumstance that led to its establishment was anbsp;little boy in one of the mission-schools asking Mrs. Schnarr�for a spelling-book for his sister, who, he said, he was teaching to read at home.nbsp;Mrs. S. had gone into the boys� school, for the purpose of listening tonbsp;their mode of pronouncing their own language, which she was desirousnbsp;of learning. This lady observed that the only three things the heathennbsp;mothers ever thought of teaching their girls was, to � keep caste,� tonbsp;� make salaam,� and to deceive ; and that the only encouragement thenbsp;poor girls ever got from their mothers, was hearing them boast � hownbsp;many clever falsehoods they could tell ! � Since that time, female education has spread through this part of Southern India, under the Churchnbsp;Missionary Society. But we believe that the London Missionary Society had, previously to this, established one or two female schools innbsp;their stations. Many who have been educated in the Church Missionarynbsp;Society�s mission-schools, are now acting the part of Christian catechist�s wives, and Christian schoolmistresses. The first day-school fornbsp;female Hindoos was opened by Mrs. Blackman, at Kadatchapuram,nbsp;and there are now seven or eight in the Tinnevelly district, containing about 250 girls, under the instruction of native teachers,nbsp;who are assembled once a-month by the wives of the resident missionaries, and a general examination of all the schools takes place oncenbsp;a-year, when rewards are usually bestowed. About 12s. jier annumnbsp;will pay aU the expenses of a day-scholar, in this part of India, andnbsp;about �3. that of a boarder, in one of the mission � compound� schools.*nbsp;The number of girls in each of these last-named schools, varies according to the means supplied for their support. Six scholars in each

* By the term � compound,� is meant the enclosed premises on which the houses, schools, amp;c. are erected, belonging to each Missionary station.

of them are paid for by the Church Missionary Society ; hut beyond this, the schools are entirely dependant on the bounty of private individuals, either in England or in India. The whole number now boardednbsp;and educated is upwards of two hundred. In the day-schools arenbsp;about six hundred. But what a very small proportion this bears tonbsp;the thousands and tens of thousands, for whom no means of instructionnbsp;of any kind is provided !

We now propose giving a very short account of the Syrian Christians in Travancore and Cochin, and the attempts made to reform the members of this corrupt yet ancient church. The Christian churches on thenbsp;Malabar coast, were planted at a very early period after the Christiannbsp;era, as some suppose, by St. Thomas the apostle ; and at the Councilnbsp;of Nice, in Asia Minor, in a.d. 325, one of the prelates who attendednbsp;there, is styled � the metropolitan of Persia and Great India.� In thenbsp;sixth century they are mentioned in the writings of a merchant of Alexandria, as � having their own priests and a bishop from Persia.� Innbsp;the following centuries the rise and spread of the Mahometan powernbsp;prevented any intercourse between the Western Churches and thesenbsp;distant brethren, and they seem scarcely known or thought of, till innbsp;1498, when the Portuguese first arrived on the coast of Malabar, undernbsp;the celebrated navigator Vasco de Gama. They found here a regularly-constituted church, as to externals at least, with deacons, priests, ornbsp;catanars, and a bishop, or metran, whom they received from Mosul innbsp;Mesopotamia, then the seat of the ancient patriarchate of Persia. Thenbsp;pettv heathen sovereigns of the country had conferred many privilegesnbsp;on these Syrian Christians, and they ranked next to the Brahmins, andnbsp;above the Nairs, or Hindoo military chiefs. The Portuguese writersnbsp;speak of them as � temperate, industrious, upright, and courteous ; �nbsp;but notwithstanding these outwardly good qualities, they exhibited anbsp;sad want of Christian humility and love ; and though they had beennbsp;kept free from heathenism, yet they had not escaped the contagion ofnbsp;pride, worldliness, and the love of power,�at which we shall perhapsnbsp;not be so much surprised, when we learn that they possessed the scriptures only in separate portions, and in the ancient Syriac language, anbsp;knowledge of which (and this in a very partial way) was confined to thenbsp;priests. Errors in doctrine, and superstitions in practice, had of coursenbsp;crept in among them ; and it is to he feared they had little morenbsp;than � a name to live.�

But soon the Portuguese power increased in India, and the Church of Rome did not long permit the Syrian churches to remain unmolested. Under pretence of rooting out their errors in doctrine,nbsp;she began to attempt bringing them into subjection to her authority.

and Jesuits were sent out to force upon them the adoration of saints and images, the worship of the Virgin, amp;c. This they steadily opposed,nbsp;shutting their churches against the Romanists, and crying out, � Wenbsp;are Christians ; we do not worship images ! � * Though numbers ofnbsp;heathen were baptized by the Roman Church, yet it is sad to thinknbsp;how little the teaching of their missionaries agreed with that of ournbsp;Lord and his apostles. Ignorant of the language, and unable to findnbsp;any efficient interpreter, the Jesuits procured a translation of the Lord�snbsp;prayer, creed, and ten commandments, with some addresses to thenbsp;Virgin and other saints, and making the people repeat after themnbsp;this mixture of truth and error, till they had learned them by rote,nbsp;they then baptized them, if they promised to renounced their idols.fnbsp;The Romanists seized and burnt all the ecclesiastical documentsnbsp;of the Syrian churches ; refused their receiving their own metran ;nbsp;and grievously persecuted them, through the cruel inquisition at Goa.nbsp;For more than fifty years this ungodly warfare was carried on, till atnbsp;length, quite worn out and discouraged, the Syrians gave up the contest ;nbsp;and, in 1599, consented to abide by the decisions of a synod, proposednbsp;by their artful foes. The constitution of their church was, by the decrees of this synod (held in the church of Oudiampu), materially altered.nbsp;They were obliged to acknowledge the supremacy of the pope�to believenbsp;in transubstantiation and purgatory�to adopt the use of images in theirnbsp;churches�prayers and masses for the dead, and atloration of saints�nbsp;and to submit to the celibacy of the clergy.

They thus groaned under the Jesuits� heavy yoke, till, in 1663, an opportunity offered itself for them to emancipate themselves, when thenbsp;Dutch took possession of Cochin and the Malabar coasts.� Thosenbsp;who had not quite sunk into Popish superstition and error, now freednbsp;themselves from their tyrants (as the Portuguese were driven out bvnbsp;the new comers), and they, in some degree, re-established the originalnbsp;constitution of their- church, and again sent for a bishop from Mosul.nbsp;These are still called Syrians ; but those who had sunk too low in errornbsp;to care even for this partial deliverance, have ever since continuednbsp;under the dominion of the pope, and are distinguished by the titlenbsp;of � Syro-Romans.� Their public worship differs from the Romannbsp;Catholic only in the use of the Syriac tongue instead of the Latin,nbsp;and they are in a melancholy state of corruption both of doctrine andnbsp;practice. Besides the Syrian Christians and Syro-Romans, there are manynbsp;Roman Catholics in Travancore and Cochin, descendants of the Portu-

* See � South Indian Sketches,� vol, ii. p. 173. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f Ibid. p. 165.

guese, or their converts ; they are divided into two parties, one holding the archbishops of Goa and Cranganore for their head, and the other,nbsp;the vicar-apostolic sent out from Rome by the pope ; and these twonbsp;sects are always fighting and quarrelling among themselves, and evennbsp;blood has been shed in their struggles for pre-eminence.*

The first Protestant attempt to benefit the Syrian Christians of Malabar was made by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, innbsp;1725 ; and the venerable Schwartz long laboured among them, plantingnbsp;the true church in the districts of Tanjore and Trichinopoly. In 1806,nbsp;Dr. Buchanan�s visit to them awakened a general interest in Greatnbsp;Britain in their behalf, and Colonel Macaulay, and his successor Colonel Munro, British residents at the court of Travancore, adopted measures for their benefit.

It was from the representations of the Rev. Marmaduke Thompson, then one of the East India Company�s chaplains, that the Church Missionary Society undertook their three first missions on the Malabarnbsp;coast, in the year 1816 ; viz. AUepie, Cottayam (or Cotym), andnbsp;Cochin. AUepie is a large town, and the chief port on the coastnbsp;for the export of pepper and other spices. The houses, thickly setnbsp;among the graceful cocoa-nut trees, extend for three miles along thenbsp;shore, and contain about 44,000 inhabitants, consisting of Hindoos,nbsp;Mahometans, Syro-Romans, and Roman Catholics, with some Arabsnbsp;and Parsees. The Rev. T. Norton laboured here for twenty-four years,nbsp;amidst many discouragements, particularly the opposition he met withnbsp;from Roman Catholics. The last year of his ministry (1839) he numbered 560 baptized converted natives among his congregation. Mrs.nbsp;Norton�s girl�s school was commenced in 1818, and stood high in thenbsp;estimation of those who knew it.

There is a race of men living in the forests about Aleppie and Cotym, caUed Jungle-men by the English, and Kurdakurs by the Hindoos. Theynbsp;are literally outcasts, and of no religion whatever, and are not allowednbsp;to come within a certain distance of any person ; they are ignorant andnbsp;wild to an extraordinary degree, are very nearly black, wear but littlenbsp;clothing, and are sunk into a low and degraded condition. They seemnbsp;something like the �Rodigos� in Ceylon. The late Rev. S. Ridsdale usednbsp;to take them to his house when he heard them shouting to him fromnbsp;the jungle, and give them clothes and food, and declare to them the waynbsp;of salvation.

The College of Cottayam (or Cotym) was established by the Church Missionary Society in 1818, for the better education of the Syriannbsp;youth, intended for the ministry. It was built and endowed by a native

princess (the Ranee of Travancore) at the suggestion of Colonel Munro. By the indefatigable exertions of the Rev. J. Bailey at Cotta-yam, a printing press for the Malayalim scriptures and tracts, wasnbsp;established,�Mr. Bailey himself casting all the types,�as those sentnbsp;him from Madras, were found to be very incorrect and defective. Henbsp;also taught an orphan boy (whom he had brought up) the art of printing, and by his steady and persevering efforts, at length accomplishednbsp;the translating and printing of the scriptures and prayer-book in Malayalim�a dialect they had never before been translated into.

Cochin is the head-quarters of popery in these parts,�the population consisting of the mixed descendants of Portuguese, Dutch, and natives,nbsp;amounting to 20,000 souls, of whom about half are Roman Catholics.nbsp;There are about 1500 Jews, who are called � Black Jews� from theirnbsp;being much darker in complexion than other Jews. Their ancestorsnbsp;are supposed to have settled here before the Christian era. The Dutchnbsp;Protestants have diminished in number to about 300, and their finenbsp;handsome church is now converted into a magazine for salt ! * Mr.nbsp;Ridsdale removed here in 1825, and shortly afterwards obtained a grantnbsp;of land from Government, and collected a small Christian village aroundnbsp;him, composed of converts from all creeds, but chiefly from popery.nbsp;A seminary for boys, and another for girls, were opened by him, andnbsp;every thing was carried on with the greatest order, activity, and energy.nbsp;Among the various extensive means of usefulness employed by Mr.nbsp;Ridsdale, was one which seems to have been peculiarly blessed ; he expected all who lived within the mission compound, and all those whonbsp;had any temporary employment there, to attend his morning familynbsp;worship, at which time he read and catechetically explained the Malayalim scriptures. Catechists, school-children, and villagers, were thenbsp;constant attendants ; and in one instance two heathen carpenters, whonbsp;came from a distance of fifty miles to work for Mr. Ridsdale, had theirnbsp;hearts opened by this means of grace ; and after some time of struggling against conviction (after they returned to their own village), theynbsp;gave up all for Christ. In 1826 Mr. Ridsdale commenced a Malayalimnbsp;service at Cochin, besides his two regular Enghsh services ; but findingnbsp;that Portuguese was more generally understood, he began the study ofnbsp;that language, and in the following year was able to preach in it. Patience and unwearied perseverance were the peculiar features of Mr.nbsp;Ridsdale�s character, and they were called into lively exercise by thenbsp;pains he took to instruct the lowest and most ignorant of the women.nbsp;No one who has not witnessed it, can have any idea of the emptiness of

mind of these poor neglected creatures ; and morning after morning, and noon after noon, was spent by him in teaching them over and overnbsp;again the same simple and important truths, when no one else couldnbsp;find them capable of learning a sentence or forming an idea.* God wasnbsp;pleased to bless his labours with success, in one remarkable instance�nbsp;the conversion of a poor degraded female Hindoo slave, whose freedom had been purchased by an English officer. Her interestingnbsp;history is to be found in the last-mentioned work. She lived manynbsp;years after she was baptized, and died a true happy Christian. Innbsp;consequence of a Government chaplain having been appointed tonbsp;Cochin, Mr. Harley (Mr. Ridsdale�s successor) has removed to Trichoor,nbsp;a large town fifty miles north of Cochin, where his work is chieflynbsp;among heathens, though there are a good many Roman Catholics. Henbsp;has laid the foundation of a church, but is waiting for funds to finish it.f

Much has been done, and much we believe is stiU doing, to reform and arouse the Syrian Christians : but as a body the Syrian Church innbsp;Malabar is in a sadly fallen state, and superstitions and errors abound.nbsp;The late Metran excommunicated all the Catanars, (or Priests) whonbsp;attempted to preach to the people ; and boys of eight and ten years oldnbsp;were ordained deacons for the sake of the fees. The new Metrannbsp;(Mar Athanasius) had been educated in the house of one of our missionaries for three or four years, and is far more enlightened in his viewsnbsp;than any of his predecessors ; but he has much to contend with in thenbsp;darkness that prevails among these nominal Christians.

Mavelicare, the last-formed Church missionary station on this coast, is a large densely-populated town near the foot of � the Ghauts� mountains, and much shut out from European intercourse. The district contains 270,000 souls : the pagodas are numerous, and twenty-one Syriannbsp;churches lie within a few miles of the town. Many Nairs and Brahmins,nbsp;and some of the family of the Rajah of Travancore reside here. Mr.nbsp;Peet first came here from the Church Missionary Society in 1838 : henbsp;built and fitted up a neat little temporary church at his own expense, andnbsp;also built a church at Malapalli, a village in the jungle, where a congregation of 200 had been gathered in, through the instrumentality of one ofnbsp;the native catechists. One of the first fruits of Mr. Peet�s ministry wasnbsp;a Nair of high caste and his wife, who were baptized 1839, and receivednbsp;the names of Cornebus and Mary. Cornelius was awakened to thenbsp;truth by reading a copy of Mr. Bailey�s Malayalim prayer-book, whichnbsp;Mr. Peet had given him.

labours in Mavelicare, has been very great and trying, both from Brahmins, Syro-Romans, and Roman Catholics ; but he has persevered in the most patient and exemplary manner, although his life has been severalnbsp;times in imminent danger. Yet he has been mercifully preserved, andnbsp;his work and labours of love have been greatly blessed ; so that amidstnbsp;all his great and trying difficultie.s he has also much cause for joy andnbsp;thankfulness.

We must now give our readers a few remarks on the labours of mis sionaries at Madras and Bombay. The Christian Knowledge Society transferred their Madras station to the Society for the Propagation of thenbsp;Gospel in 1836. This Society has lately very much increased its numbernbsp;of missionaries here. Besides the Diocesan Institution, and the Veperynbsp;Grammar School, both for high class youths, this society is meditatingnbsp;other schools, and means of usefulness.

Madras has suffered much from want of missionaries, which evil it is hoped will shortly be remedied. The town differs from Calcutta innbsp;having very few English residences. It contains upwards of 400,000nbsp;souls. There is an English Protestant church within the fort, and thenbsp;Church Missionary Society has also a good-sized church. A grammarnbsp;school for East Indians, called � Bishop Corrie�s Grammar School,� isnbsp;partly supported by the Church Missionary Society ; as is also thenbsp;� Ladies� Institution� for East Indian females. Besides these, there isnbsp;the � Church Missionary Institution,� for preparing natives and country-

156 nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;CHAP. vil.�INDIA, OR HINDOSTAN.

born young men for the work of the ministry. There are several day and Sunday schools in Madras for the poorer classes, under the care ofnbsp;the Ladies� Committee, and numbering about 500 girls, and a Centralnbsp;school under the charge of Mrs. Winckler, containing nearly about 200nbsp;children, of the lower orders of natives. These schools have effectednbsp;much good in Madras ; but there is still much, very much to be done ;nbsp;and those who are labouring here need encouragement and help.

The London Missionary Society has a female native boarding-school at Madras, of which encouraging reports are given, and another latelynbsp;established for boys ; but their missionaries say in their last report, thenbsp;Madras population in general are � violently opposed to the preachingnbsp;of the Gospel.�

The Wesleyan Missionary Society seems to have the largest numbei� of scholars of any Society in Madras : in this city, in Tanjore, and thenbsp;Mysore country, they number 1900 scholars ; but a very small proportion of these are females. It speaks well for the Wesleyan and Londonnbsp;missionaries� labours in Southern India, that there are Native Tractnbsp;Societies established, and in full operation at their stations of Bangalore, Bellary, Nagercoil, and Neyoor.

At Bombay, the Propagation Society have a girl�s school chiefly consisting of East Indians and Sudo-Portuguese. The � Ladies� Society for Promoting Female Education in the East,� have begun schoolsnbsp;here (as well as at Madras) : they require much encouragement andnbsp;support. Mr. and Mrs. Farrar began their indefatigable labours atnbsp;Nassuck near Bombay in 4832. Mrs. F. has an interesting femalenbsp;school here, hut great opposition is shewn by the Brahmins. The statistical table will show the amount of American, Scotch, and Germannbsp;missionary labours in this part of the heathen world. The Americannbsp;missionaries had twelve native schools at Bombay in 1818. Mr. Weit-brecht mentions in his work on � Indian Missions,� that some devotednbsp;German Brethren are labouring in Bengal, supported by a private individual ; but they are not connected with any Society.

� When the new Charter of the East India Company threw the vast continent of India open to foreign as well as British settlers, in thenbsp;year 1833, the Committee of the Basle Missionary Society felt themselves called upon to open a mission on the western coast of Canara,nbsp;and the southern Mahratta country. In 1842 there were twenty-three German Brethren labouring at eight stations on this coast.nbsp;They had two boarding-schools�one for boys and another for girls,nbsp;prospering at Mangalore, and a lithographic printing-press, which hadnbsp;printed the Gospel of St. Matthew and several tracts in the Canarese,nbsp;Malayalim, and Tulu dialects. The labours of the three missionaries

and their wives at Dwharwar seem very extensive, and undertaken with the greatest possible zeal and energy. At Cannanore there was anbsp;school collected in the Mission Compound ; and the missionaries heldnbsp;four native, one Portuguese, and three English services in the missionnbsp;chapel every week, besides bazar-preaching from time to time, whichnbsp;was always well attended to. At Tellicherry they have a female boarding school with twenty-one girls, and four native day schools containingnbsp;135 boys. At Calicut, there were four native boys� schools, containingnbsp;in all 180 scholars, two of which schools are supported by E. B. Thomas, Esq., and H, V. Conolly, Esq.� The missionaries state�� Thenbsp;want of well-trained native catechists is severely felt ; much would benbsp;done, if we were supplied with a goodly band of such auxiliaries.� *

* The above is extracted from a work published in 1843, entitled, � The Evangelical Missionary Society of Basle,� by the Rev. W. Holiinan.

* In 1824, the Christian Knowledge Society commenced its labours here. The station was transferred to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, in 1833.

These five early dates do not properly belong to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, but to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, who did not give them up to the Society fornbsp;Propagating the Gospel till after 1826; viz. Madras, 1826; Tanjore, 1829; Trichiiiopoly, 1829;nbsp;Negapatam, 1835 : Dindigul, 1838.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;if One the Orphan Asylum.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� A native.

11 � Tinnevelly District,� includes Palamcottah ; where is a Church Missionary Society School for Heathens.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Two arc natives.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;** One a native.

This beautiful island is situated at the entrance to the bay of Bengal, and is separated from India by a narrow rocky strait. Its (hstance fromnbsp;Cape Comorin is 150 miles. Its greatest length is 270 miles, and itsnbsp;breadth in the widest part 140 miles. The interior of the island isnbsp;formed of ranges of mountains, in general not approaching nearer to thenbsp;sea than forty miles, while a belt of rich alluvial earth nearly surroundsnbsp;it ; and it is well watered also with numerous rivers and streams. Thenbsp;highest part of the mountains, called Adam�s Peak, is about 6000nbsp;feet. These mountain-ranges are covered with gigantic forests andnbsp;jungles, which abound with wild animals, particularly elephants. Thenbsp;whole country is remarkably picturesque.�*' The north and east parts ofnbsp;the island are much less productive than the rest. The eastern coast isnbsp;singularly bold, rocky, and beautiful. Columbo, on the western coast,nbsp;is the Enghsh capital, has many handsome buildings, and is stronglynbsp;fortified. It has a Malabar or Tamul church, a Portuguese Protestantnbsp;church, a Dutch church, and several chapels belonging to the Romannbsp;Catholics, besides the chapels of the Wesleyan and Baptist missionaries.nbsp;Trincomalee, on the opposite coast of the island, is also a fortified town,nbsp;and is very beautifully situated, but the adjoining country is unfruitful.nbsp;It possesses a most splendid harbour.f Here are two Roman Catholicnbsp;chapels, and several mosques and temples belonging to Moormen andnbsp;Tamulians. A large room in the barracks is used as a church by thenbsp;military and Europeans. There is also a Wesleyan chapel.J

Kandy, the ancient capital of Ceylon, in the centre of the island, contains many Boodhist temples ; and in one of these is the celebrated

* See Montgomery Martin on the Colonies, vol. i. p. 345. Murray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography,� p. 1007.nbsp;� Selkirk�s � Recollections of Ceylon,� 1844.

relic of Boodh called his � canine tooth,� which is worshipped by these ignorant idolaters. Batticaloe and Batticotta must not be confoundednbsp;together : Batticaloe is a town on the south-eastern coast, and Batticottanbsp;is a village seven miles from Jafina, at the very northern extremity ofnbsp;the island. The remains of several towns and cities in the interior ofnbsp;Ceylon are very ancient, and must at one time have been exceedinglynbsp;magnificent. The most renowned are the ruins of Anuradhapuram,nbsp;which indicate the former greatness of the place. The remains of onenbsp;building consists of 1600 stone pillars, forming a solid square of forty onnbsp;each side,* Great improvements have of late years been made in thenbsp;island by the English. The roads from Colombo to Kandy, distance ofnbsp;seventy-two miles, and from Columbo to Galle on the southern coast,nbsp;are as good as any in England, and mail-coaches run daily on bothnbsp;these roads. English merchants and others have bought large tracts ofnbsp;land of Government, and have planted them with cinnamon, coffee, andnbsp;sugar-cane ; all of which grow luxuriantly in the island. The riversnbsp;in Ceylon are numerous, and there is 100 miles of inland navigationnbsp;through a most picturesque country, from Chilaw on the western coastnbsp;to Putlam, thirty miles north of Caltura.f

Ceylon abounds with minerals and precious stones, as iron ore, mica, plumbago, nitre, salt, mercury, the ruby, sapphire, topaz, amethyst, andnbsp;others. Its trees are numerous, and both beautiful and useful. Murraynbsp;(in his Encyclop�dia of Geography) says, � The produce and wealth ofnbsp;Ceylon are not in proportion to its natural capacities. Great part of thenbsp;island is mountainous and craggy, and has never been cleared of jungle.nbsp;The American missionaries in 1841 assert that agriculture as carried on bynbsp;the natives has not improved for the last thousand years.� Rice, accordingnbsp;to Murray, though almost the only object of native culture, is not raisednbsp;in sufficient quantity for the support of the inhabitants. The Cinnamonnbsp;tree, (Laurus cinnamonumj though cultivated in many tropical places,nbsp;has its principal habitation at Ceylon, which is capable of yielding anbsp;sufficient supply for every country of Europe.! � If grows from fournbsp;to ten feet high, with numerous branches, and has a light porous wood.nbsp;The bark, which forms this most delicate spice, is taken off when thenbsp;tree is three years old, and requires no preparation but that of drying innbsp;the sun.� � The Cocoa-nut Palm is the most useful tree in the islandnbsp;to the natives, supplying nearly all their domestic wants. From its stemnbsp;they make the beams or rafters, and thatch the roofs of their houses withnbsp;its leaves ; and to fasten the several parts of the building together, they

See Montgomery Martin, vol. i. p. 347. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� Ibid. p. 403.

use the rope called coir, made from the husk. The Jack-tree is also a very useful tree to the Cinghalese, and hears a large fruit growing immediately out of the trunk. Mr. Selkirk mentions having seen the Jackfruit two-and-a-half feet in length, and upwards of three feet in girth.nbsp;Another valuable tree common in Ceylon is the Bread-fruit Tree ; it hasnbsp;large branches on which are twice a year found fruit about the size of annbsp;infant�s head: when boiled it somewhat resembles the potatoe; it is muchnbsp;used as an article of food by both Europeans and natives. Montgomerynbsp;Martin says, from Tangalle to Chelau, a distance of nearly 135 miles, itnbsp;is one continued grove of cocoa-nut, bread-fruit, and jack-fruit trees.nbsp;Tlie Areca-nut tree is useful to the Cinghalese, as the nuts form a partnbsp;of the composition which they in common with other Asiatics constantlynbsp;chew. The other ingredients are betel-leaf, prepared lime (or ckunam),nbsp;and tobacco. The Talpat-tree, or Great Fan-Palm, is abundant in Ceylon,nbsp;especially in the interior. It is straight and very lofty, and has a tuft ofnbsp;immense leaves at the top, which are used for making umbrellas. Thenbsp;pith of the stem is beaten out and used like flour by the natives. Thenbsp;leaves of the Talpat, or Tallipot-Palm, are also used as paper, and all thenbsp;native books are written on it,�that is, scratched with a style, and theynbsp;also use a fine powder made of charcoal, which they throw over the leavesnbsp;after they are so scratched, which renders the letters more visible. Amongnbsp;the other trees of Ceylon are the banian (whose branches send forth rootsnbsp;which grow downwards perpendicularly till they reach and enter thenbsp;ground), the mango-tree, the custard-apple, the silk cotton-tree, and thenbsp;gamboge-tree, whose milky yellow juice forms the paint we call gamboge.nbsp;Besides which, are the plantain-tree (Musa paradisaicaj, the guava,nbsp;pomegranate, tamarind, tobacco, fig, orange and lime, the ebony, andnbsp;the teak, and the bo-tree ; which last is the sacred tree of the Boodhist.nbsp;There is a great variety of quadrupeds in Ceylon. Mr. Selkirk says,nbsp;� The forests and jungles are literally filled with elephants.� Montgomery Martin says � none of these animals are reared in a tame state, butnbsp;numbers are caught and easily tamed in eight or ten days.� Buffaloesnbsp;are as abundant as cows in England, and sheep and goats are found innbsp;the northern parts.* Among the wild animals are elks (similar it isnbsp;said, to those whose fossil remains are found in the bogs of Ireland),nbsp;deer, bears, hogs, jackalls, polecats, porcupines, monkeys, and squirrels.nbsp;Among the reptiles and insects may be named the tortoise, the largenbsp;and small guana, several kinds of snakes (but four kinds only are numerous), alligators, lizards, chameleons, tarantulas, scorpions, mosquitos, fire-flies, and black, red, and white ants.

The annual range of the thermometer in Ceylon round the coast is from 70 degrees to 91 degrees ; but at Kandy, in the elevated centre ofnbsp;the island, it ranges from 66 degrees to 86 degrees ; and at Neweranbsp;Ellia, in the middle of the day, it seldom exceeds 73 degrees, while atnbsp;night in December and January it sometimes falls as low as 28 degrees.*nbsp;Owing to its insular position, no climate is more favoured than that ofnbsp;Ceylon, its temperature being moderate compared with the scorchingnbsp;plains of India. Being within the tropics, it is subject to the S.W.nbsp;monsoon ; and where the soil is not cleared the country is liable to pernicious miasmata, arising from stagnant marshes and thick jungles ; butnbsp;the whole island is becoming more salubrious as it is more cleared andnbsp;cultivated.� -f

It was in the year 1518 that the Portuguese took possession of the maritime provinces of Ceylon, and drove the King of Kandy into thenbsp;interior. In 1603 a Dutch fleet arrived at Trincomalee, and offered tonbsp;assist the King of Kandy against their former conquerors, and after anbsp;hard struggle for more than three years they drove out the Portuguesenbsp;from the island. The Cinghalese found that they had not exchangednbsp;masters for the better ; for from 1656 to 1696, when the British innbsp;their turn came to the aid of the Kandians, the Dutch were continuallynbsp;engaged in hostilities with their mountain-neighbours. In 1803 thenbsp;English captured the Kandian capital, but were not long allowed tonbsp;retain it, for the natives soon after got the advantage over them, andnbsp;drove their forces away. In 1815, however, the King of Kandy wasnbsp;deposed for his wanton cruelties by his subjects, who invited the Britishnbsp;to take possession of the interior, and the whole island has from thatnbsp;time been entirely under British rule : it was made a royal colony, notnbsp;subject to the controul of the East India Company. It is governed bynbsp;a governor and three judges sent from England. There are also two executive councils. The highest ecclesiastical functionary is the archdeacon,nbsp;under whom are five English chaplains and five native chaplains appointed by the government.

The population of the whole island, as appears by a census taken in 1835, is rather upwards of one million.! The inhabitants may benbsp;divided into four classes, independent of European settlers. 1st. The

See Montgomery Martin on the Colonies, vol. i. p. .3.50. � See Selkirk�s � Recollections of Ceylon,� p. 23.

Cinghalese, who inhabit the southern and western parts of the island. Murray says of these, that they resemble the natives of Hindostan,nbsp;Burmah, Siam, and the oriental islands, with all of whom they holdnbsp;intercourse ; that they are a handsome race and courteous in their manners, but indolent, and very little advanced in arts and sciences.* 2nd.nbsp;The Tamulians, who it is supposed came over from the opposite coastsnbsp;of India ; they are more active and industrious than the Cinghalese,nbsp;but are equally selfish. 3rd. The Moormen, who are descendants, it isnbsp;supposed, of the Arabs, who in the eleventh and twelfth centuries possessed many of the maritime towns in the island ; or some think theynbsp;are the same as the Mahometans of India : they are, like them, scatterednbsp;all over the country. 4th. The Veddas (or Whedahs), an untutorednbsp;race, who live in the forests and jungles in the interior of the island,nbsp;and are extremely wild, having neither habitations nor scarcely anynbsp;clothing, but subsist on the fruits of the mountains and in hunting.nbsp;They sometimes exchange their ivory, honey, and wax for iron toolsnbsp;and pieces of cloth, with the natives of the more civilized parts.f Besides these, there are in Ceylon a number of Malays and Caffres : thenbsp;former are of a bright copper colour, and the latter were formerly imported into the island by the Dutch from the Cape of Good Hope.nbsp;Both these races compose a considerable part of the native troops.

The character of the Cinghalese, as given by the Rev, J. Selkirk, in his late work on Ceylon, is, that they are kind and mild in their manners,nbsp;hospitable and obliging ; though under their fair outside there is a greatnbsp;degree of selfishness and cunning. The better educated among them,nbsp;who have learnt the English language, are often very respectable andnbsp;honourable persons, and are entrusted by the English government withnbsp;various offices of responsibility. Although the Cinghalese profess thenbsp;Boodhist form of superstition, in which no distinction of caste is recognized, yet they do observe caste with great punctuality,! and arenbsp;divided into twenty-one sects, including various professions and occupations.

On this subject Montgomery Martin, in his book on the Colonies, makes the following remark : � While the Malabars (or Tamulians) ofnbsp;Ceylon, professing the Hindoo faith, maintain the religious as well as

See Selkirk�s � Recollections of Ceylon,� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ibid. p. 56.

the civil distinctions of caste, the Cinghalese, who are Boodhists, have abolished the former and retained the latter ; hence prohahly the hostilities subsisting between these two sects.�

In personal appearance the Cinghalese are good-looking, with bright black eyes and long black hair, which the men, as well as the women,nbsp;tie up into a knot at the top of their heads, and fasten with a comb ; thenbsp;women wearing two long pins as well, crossing each other at right angles.nbsp;Like the Hindoos, they are extremely fond of jewels and ornaments, fornbsp;the ears, nose, arms, and ankles. The dress of the men consists of a'piecenbsp;of cloth wound round the waist, and fastened with a broad belt ; and overnbsp;this, on the upper part of the body, the higher classes wear a jacketnbsp;open in front, and a waistcoat. The jacket is changed, on dress occasions, for a broad-lapped coat, fastened up to the collar with very largenbsp;gold or silver buttons, to which they add a gold or silver sword andnbsp;belt. The dress of the women is the comboy, or cloth, and a jacketnbsp;closed in front, and generally a pair of stays made of silk, and richlynbsp;embroidered. They also wear sandals. The dress of the Tamuliansnbsp;differs but little from that of the Cinghalese, hut the men wear a turban,nbsp;and the women a long piece of cloth, gracefully thrown over the shoulders instead of the jacket and stays.

One of the worst parts of the Cinghalese character is their neglect of the poor and the sick, who undergo many hardships and miseries bynbsp;their being forsaken of their friends and relatives. Their sicknesses andnbsp;diseases arc looked upon as the consequence of some wickedness committed in a former birth ; and were it not for the compassion shown �nbsp;them by the missionaries, many must perish from want and hunger.*nbsp;Mr. Trimnell, a missionary, thus writes of them ; � The poverty andnbsp;distress of the poor beggars around us bring them more frequently thannbsp;any connected with us, under the means of grace ; and scarcely any ofnbsp;them would hear the gospel, or but seldom, did they not come to seeknbsp;relief from us for their bodily necessities. Many of them appear notnbsp;only to hear but to feel the word spoken to them.� f

The Tamulians, who inhabit the northern portion of the island of Ceylon, being of the Hindoo or Brahminical religion, their faith hasnbsp;already been spoken of in the preceding chapter upon Hindoostan ; butnbsp;the Cinghalese are Boodhists, and of them we will now give a short

account. Although the history of Boodhism, or Buddhism, as given by the Rev, J, Selkirk, in his Recollections of Ceylon, differs in some fewnbsp;particulars from the account given us by Mr. H. Malcom, of the religious faith as practised in Burmah, yet it is clearly manifest that it isnbsp;one and the same religion which is described in each account. We willnbsp;give a short outline of Mr. Selkirk�s description of the Boodhism ofnbsp;Ceylon ; it was taken by him from a native work written in Pah, thenbsp;sacred language of the Boodhists :�� In the time of Dissankara Boodh,nbsp;he who was to become Boodha, was born of Brahminical parents in thenbsp;city of Amara. When he was grown up, he distributed his immense richesnbsp;to the poor, and assuming the character of a hermit, lived in holy meditation in the wilderness. In this character he saw Dissankara Boodha,nbsp;from whom he received the sacred assurance that he should himselfnbsp;one day become Boodha, and the time of his exaltation to the Boodha-hood was also foretold to him. Having through a vast number of agesnbsp;exercised all the virtues which are absolutely necessary to be perfectednbsp;by every expectant of the Boodhahood (viz. almsgiving, holy austerities,nbsp;abandonment of the world, wisdom, exertion, patience, truth, resoluteness, benevolence, and the regarding of all, friends and foes, alike), henbsp;took his abode in the sixth of the divine worlds ; and after the appropriate age had passed, the gods and Bramas of the ten universes wentnbsp;to his mansion, and begged his appearance in this present human world.nbsp;Whereupon he was born son of King Suddhadena, in the continent ofnbsp;Dambadiwa. At his birth the gods and Bramas exclaimed, � O greatnbsp;one, there existed not in these regions one equal to thee, or greater thannbsp;thou ! � And he proclaimed his own greatness in these words, � 1 amnbsp;the most exalted in the world ; this is my last life ; I shall not be bornnbsp;again.� He then passed twenty-nine years in worldly wealth and grandeur, and six more in mortification and penance ; and then sitting downnbsp;under a bo-tree, declared he would not rise up till he became Boodha,nbsp;Lord of the Universe. Upon this a great number of chiefs, Bramas,nbsp;and gods, made their appearance as his retinue ; and then his adversary,nbsp;Maraya, came with a great army to try to hinder his becoming lord ofnbsp;the world. Upon this, panic-struck, the gods and Bramas all fled and hidnbsp;themselves ; Maraya then brought on thick darkness, but the body ofnbsp;Boodh was light as a thousand suns. He then attempted to strike him,nbsp;and asked him, � Who is your witness that you have done works ofnbsp;merit, for which you should deserve this seat ? � Then Boodh exclaimed,nbsp;' I have no rational witness here ; � and called upon the Earth to proclaim his actions, in the course of his endeavours to become Boodh.nbsp;Upon this, the earth rumbled 100,000 times, and began to turn round.nbsp;Whereupon Maraya was dismayed and defeated, and acknowledging the

superiority of Boodh, fled ashamed, and all the gods and Bramas of the universe came and ministered to Boodh triumphant ; thus, completelynbsp;extinguishing evil, and acquiring omniscience, he became perfectnbsp;Boodha. The death (or extinction, as the original signifies,) of thisnbsp;distinguished luminary of the world took place in the 85th year of hisnbsp;life, and 45th of his public ministry ; previous to which he foretold thatnbsp;his religion, after extending over the world, would become extinguished,nbsp;and be renewed by his successor, Maitra Boodha, who is now in anbsp;divine state, and after the appropriate age will become Boodha.�

The preceding extracts are taken from one of the sacred books of the Cinghalese, and amply serve to show into what depths of darknessnbsp;and error the unhappy Boodhist is fallen. And yet, alas ! how manynbsp;millions of our fellow-creatures are sunk in this awful state of delusionnbsp;and misery, without a hope or a comfort beyond annihilation ; which,nbsp;according to their ideas, is the height of their desires, and can only benbsp;attained by the greatest possible merit ! How different from the beautiful call of the great Jehovah, in Christ our Redeemer, � Look untonbsp;me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth ! �

The Boodhist denies that there is a supreme self-existent God. He says. Matter, in some form or other, is eternal : the present state ofnbsp;things has arisen out of a former one ; and so on.* Hence arises theirnbsp;belief in the transmigration of souls, or the passing of the soul intonbsp;different bodies and creatures, almost an endless number of times.nbsp;Mr. Selkirk once asked a Buddhist, at one of their idol-festivals, � Ifnbsp;Buddha knew anything of what they were doing to him? � He replied,nbsp;� Buddha knows all things, past, present, and to come.� � But,� replied the missionary, � I read in your sacred books, that he does not ;nbsp;for he is in Niwana,t where he feels neither happiness nor misery ; asnbsp;that is the end of all transmigration : might not those ffowers as well benbsp;offered to my stick ? � The man returned for answer : �It would makenbsp;no difference as regards the image itself ; but they who are to becomenbsp;Boodhas wUl reward those who honour Boodha�s image.� � A remarkable answer, showing that man, in his most dark and fallen state, isnbsp;ever looking and seeking for something whereon he can rest his hopes ;nbsp;but that without the light of the Holy Spirit from on high, he willnbsp;grope on in doubt and confusion, and never find any conclusion that isnbsp;really satisfactory.

The � Niwan.quot;!� of the Cinghalese Boodhist is the same as the � Nic-ban� of the Burmese. � The term is Sanscrit, and derived from � Ni,� without, and � wana,� desire ;nbsp;and signifies, in Cinghalese, to extinguish, as .a flame; and to cool, as victuals that arenbsp;exposed to the air,�See Selkirk�s � Recollections of Ceylon.� � Ibid. p. 260.

Major Forbes, in his book entitled � Eleven Years in Ceylon,� says, � The duties of a man in the Boodhist religion may be summed upnbsp;thus : � Abstain from all sin ; practice all virtue ; repress thine heart.� �nbsp;How cold, feeble, and inefficient, compared with that beautiful summarynbsp;of Christian practice, contained in the words, � Thou shalt love thenbsp;Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy mind, and with allnbsp;thy soul, and with all thy strength, and thy neighbour as thyself.� Thenbsp;Niwana of the Boodhist is too distant to encourage virtue, or repressnbsp;vice. The Rev. R. S. Hardy says, � Boodhism is utterly impotent as anbsp;principle of morals.��^^*

The introduction of Boodhism into Ceylon took place in the year of Boodh 237, which answers to b.c. 306. Mr. Selkirk mentions that, innbsp;1581, one of the Kandian kings endeavoured to extirpate the worshipnbsp;of Boodha � Gawtama� (the same as the Gaudama of the Burmese), andnbsp;place Braminism in its stead ; but it was restored by priests sent fromnbsp;Arracan, in Burmah ; and that at a later period also, Boodhism fallingnbsp;into disuse (at the time when the Portuguese and Dutch invaded thenbsp;island), it was restored by priests from Siam.

The � Wiharas� or Boodhist temples of Ceylon, unlike the pagodas of Burmah, contain images of Gowtama, or Gaudma. The principal offerings made by the Cinghalese are flowers ; and there is always anbsp;brazen vessel in every temple, into which each worshipper pours oil ;nbsp;which is afterwards used by the priests at their idol-festivals, and duringnbsp;their pansala, or preaching-season, which lasts during three months innbsp;every year.

The � Wiharas � are numerous in aU Cinghalese towns. The � Dago-bas� are receptacles for relics, and are often very splendid buildings. The priests of Boodha are very numerous, and their dress is of yellownbsp;cloth (as in Burmah) : they also live by begging, as in the latter country,nbsp;and on the best of the land, as the villagers always take good care thatnbsp;their priests want for nothing. A priest never bows to any one, considering himself superior to all human beings ; and no one is allowed tonbsp;sit in his presence. The priests in Ceylon have a pretty good knowledge of medicine, as far as it is laid down in their own books ; but innbsp;many parts of the island they use enchantments and other ceremoniesnbsp;to cure the sick, as they think their diseases proceed from their beingnbsp;possessed by the devil, -who they must drive out of the suflerer bynbsp;dancing and noise.f

The Tamulians, who are Braminists, have thirteen festivals in honour of their false gods and goddesses in the course of the year, some of

which last many days, and are attended with every kind of feasting and wickedness the heart of man can conceive. � In Novemher aU the daysnbsp;are fast-days, likewise all the Sundays in August, in honour of the sun,nbsp;when he is considered as being in his own house, Leo.� *

It appears, from the account published by the Church Missionary Society, in 1833, that the Dutch, when in possession of Ceylon, hadnbsp;made a law that none could inherit property but those who were baptized and registered ; in consequence of which, at Baddagame, andnbsp;other parts, the missionaries found many merely nominal Christians,nbsp;who were, in fact, no better than heathens, and were hving in thenbsp;grossest ignorance. And, according to Mr. Selkirk�s account, there arenbsp;many Cinghalese and descendants of the Dutch and Portuguese settlers,nbsp;who call themselves (chiefly for political reasons) Christians by profession, of the Reformed or the Roman Catholic churches, but who arenbsp;often in reality worshippers of Boodha. Those who are now callednbsp;Portuguese, in Ceylon, are characterized by their pride, meanness, andnbsp;poverty. Learning is at a low ebb among them, and the only books innbsp;their language, which is the Indo-Portuguese, are parts of the Bible andnbsp;the Book of Common Prayer, which have been translated for them,nbsp;within the last twenty-five years, by the Bible and Missionary Societies.

� I am the Lord; that is my name, and my glory loill I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images^

The Church Missionary Society commenced missionary operations in Ceylon, in 1818. The Baptist missionaries and Wesleyans had preceded them about six years. Three stations were entered into at once,nbsp;viz. Kandy, in the centre of the island ; Baddagame, twelve miles to thenbsp;north of Galle, in the south ; and Nellore, a village near Jaffna, at thenbsp;extreme northern point of the island. Since 1818, the number of missionaries of the Church Missionary Society, who have laboured in thisnbsp;island up to the present time (1844), is sixteen ; and out of this numbernbsp;it is a remarkable fact that only two of them have died, viz. Mr.nbsp;Browning in 1838, and Mr. Knight in 1840. Mr. Lambrick commenced Divine service at Kandy, in the Cinghalese language, with anbsp;small native congregation, in 1821. In 1823, the children attendingnbsp;the five missionary schools amounted to 127, and in the following year

to 243 ; and by this time a small number of native converts had been baptized at this station. In 1827, there were eight communicants, andnbsp;some of the sons of Kandian chiefs had manifested a spirit of inquirynbsp;into Christianity. This year (1827) a girls� school was established.nbsp;So utterly neglected and debased were all females in Ceylon, before thenbsp;missionaries went there, that a woman one day came to Kandy, tonbsp;inquire of the scripture reader, � Whether any woman found admissionnbsp;into heaven?� In 1831, the first Sunday-school was commenced atnbsp;Kandy. In 1839, the number of children in the day-schools belongingnbsp;to the Church Missionary Society was 369, of whom 56 were girls.*

The first Protestant Episcopal church, for a Cinghalese congregation, was built at Baddagame, in 1821, and was consecrated by Bishopnbsp;Heber, in 1824. There has been a girls�-school at Baddagame, evernbsp;since the first commencement of the mission at this place in 1818,nbsp;where, during the last twenty years, not less than between eight andnbsp;nine hundred Cinghalese females have received a Christian education.nbsp;Many of them have married ; and the difference between them and thenbsp;other uneducated females in the island is very great. On account ofnbsp;their honesty, diligence, activity, and cleanliness, these scholars havenbsp;always been much sought after by the English as female servants.

The first adult heathen baptism did not take place at Baddagame station till the year 1830. The missionary at this time writes, thatnbsp;� though the heathen, with only a few exceptions, were, with regard tonbsp;real conversion, just what they were twelve years before, yet that itnbsp;must not be supposed nothing had been done among them ; for thatnbsp;the knowledge of the truth was possessed by very many, and that knowledge had been obtained chiefly by reading portions of the Bible, tracts,nbsp;and catechisms.� f

In 1839, there were at Baddagame, in connection with the Church Missionary Society, one missionary and his wife, 17 native male teachers,nbsp;and 5 female ; in 18 schools there are 500 boys and 222 girls, and 12nbsp;youths in a higher Christian seminary or boarding-school. The numbernbsp;of communicants was 6.J

The Rev. Mr. Knight of the Church Missionary Society, went to Ceylon in 1818, and in two years he understood the Tamul languagenbsp;sufficiently to propose a weekly discourse, and conduct divine service innbsp;that language. He was joined in 1821, by Mr. and Mrs. Bailey, andnbsp;they shortly after had three schools, containing nearly 300 children.nbsp;A printing-press was established, and a great number of tracts were

printed, which were eagerly received by the people. The character given of the natives of Nellore, by Mr. Knight in 1831, was, that itnbsp;was composed of credulity towards their own false systems, fickleness,nbsp;imbecility, flattery, falsehood, dissimulation, and hypocrisy. Yet notwithstanding, writes the Missionary of NeUore at this time, �Not a fewnbsp;are the proofs that heathenism is losing its hold upon the affections andnbsp;interests of the people. The desire of the native youth to secure tonbsp;themselves the benefits offered by the schools, that abound especially, innbsp;this northern district (Jafiha) is very great.� � In these schools, notnbsp;only have the young been instructed, but they have been used as placesnbsp;of worship, in which, year after year, the blessed Gospel has beennbsp;faithfully preached, and the folly and wickedness of their idol-worshipnbsp;and superstitious practices been pointed out and exposed, while thousands and tens of thousands of tracts have been circulated among theirnbsp;villages, as well as great numbers of copies of either the whole or ofnbsp;parts of the Holy Scripture.� In the year 1826, four youths from thenbsp;Nellore Christian Institution were baptized. Some of their letters arenbsp;given by Mr. Selkirk in his � Recollections of Ceylon,� and are highlynbsp;interesting, as showing the wonderful influence of Christianity uponnbsp;minds previously bowed down with idolatry, superstition, and ignorance. The great benefit of female education in the East, is clearlynbsp;shown in regarding Missionary works in Ceylon. Females attend thenbsp;idol-temples for worship much more regularly than men, and instil thenbsp;principles of heathenism into the minds of their children, which yearsnbsp;of better instruction are insufficient fully to eradicate.

The fourth Church Missionary station in Ceylon was undertaken in 1823, at Cotta, a village five miles south-east of Columbo, containingnbsp;between 3 and 4000 inhabitants. Here is the Christian Institution, fornbsp;native youths of superior attainments, who may be fitted for the ministry. At its first commencement in 1829, ten students were admitted.nbsp;Since that time, between 80 and 100 youths have passed through thisnbsp;excellent seminary�and out of that number, only three have misconducted themselves or fallen into immoral habits. Our best schoolmasters, catechists, and assistants are taken from this institution. Theirnbsp;themes upon the principles of Christianity, (as given by the Rev. J. Selkirknbsp;in his interesting work on Ceylon) would do credit to the educated youthsnbsp;of our own favoured country. One of the two natives, who have latelynbsp;been ordained as clergymen of the Church of England, was among thenbsp;first students of the Cotta Institution.

The first Cinghalese translation of the Scriptures, contained so many Sanscrit and Pali words, that it was unintelligible to the common people,nbsp;who do not understand those languages : the Church Missionary Society

therefore, prepared and printed at their own press at Cotta, the whole of the Old and New Testaments in � familiar Cinghalese,� the usefulness of this � Cotta version,� as it is called, has been found verynbsp;apparent.

The American Missionary operations were commenced in 1816, and they are entirely confined to the district of Jaffna, in the north of thenbsp;island, where it will be seen by the statistical table at the end of this chapternbsp;they have now upwards of four stations. The great advantage of thisnbsp;concentration of Missionary labours, in preference to a wide scattering ofnbsp;the dilFerent stations, in a district or country, has been well shown bynbsp;the Rev. B. Noel in his excellent work on � Christian Missions.� Henbsp;says, � From the first, these six American Missionaries, instead of beingnbsp;alone, have had the comfort of each other�s society. Among them, nonbsp;one could be depressed by solitude, nor be destitute of aid in sickness,nbsp;nor be unable to ask counsel in perplexity. Another advantage derivednbsp;from the contiguity of the stations, was the formation of two centralnbsp;schools. One for training up a native ministry, the other for the education of the most promising girls. Had the stations been widely scattered, the duties of a single missionary would have prevented the duenbsp;attention to a seminary at the station. ' Forty-eight youths werenbsp;received into the Batticotta Institution the first year, and in 1834nbsp;there were 142, and the central female school at Oodooville soon became so popular, that on one occasion, when there were vacancies fornbsp;twenty girls, more than seventy, and nearly all of good caste, appliednbsp;for admission. In the year 1822, fourteen natives were added to thenbsp;Church.� * The increase in the scholars of the American schools havenbsp;indeed been very great, and they have been repeatedly borne testimonynbsp;to by the governors of the island. In 1835, seventy-seven membersnbsp;were added to their church, chiefly in consequence of a remarkable outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the preceding year.f They have four printing presses at NeUore, and have issued an immense number of tracts andnbsp;portions of Holy Scripture, since their establishment. Out of fifty-sixnbsp;teachers of their free schools, thirty-two are admitted members of thenbsp;church.

The Wesleyan Missionary society in their last Report, states that the governor had lately been instrumental in the formation of a Society,nbsp;called � the Jafiha Native Improvement Society,� which had mainlynbsp;originated with the young natives taught and educated in the Wesleyannbsp;Mission schools. In speaking of the Wesleyan Missionary exertions

See � Christian Missions to Heathen Nations,� (p, 3.38) by Rev. B. Noel. 1842. See � Report of the American Board of Missions� for 18.36.

in the island of Ceylon, we ought not to omit to mention, that their mission here was set on foot in 1813, hy that indefatigable promoter ofnbsp;Christian Missions, Dr. Coke. He had on many occasions met withnbsp;opposition from his brethren, in consequence of the state of theirnbsp;finances ; he therefore generously offered to bear the whole expense himself of the Mission to Ceylon, and that to the extent of �6000, shouldnbsp;that sum be necessary. The Conference, awed into silence by this noblenbsp;act of beneficence, agreed to commence the Mission, and this was theirnbsp;first effort in the East.*

We cannot conclude these few remarks upon what has been attempted in behalf of poor fallen and superstitious idolater of Ceylon, without alluding to the exertions of the British and Foreign Biblenbsp;Society, to promote the same good and holy cause of truth, and thenbsp;salvation of sinners in this benighted island. The following extract isnbsp;from the speech of a clergyman at the Annual Meeting of the Britishnbsp;and Foreign Bible Society in London in 1826. � The natives of Ceylonnbsp;were under the dominion of Europeans for 250 years, before theirnbsp;conquerors gave them any part of the word of God ; and it was notnbsp;till this Society arose, that they had any versions of the Scriptures.nbsp;A remarkable circumstance occurred respecting the first labours of thenbsp;Bible Society in Ceylon; 300 copies of St. Matthew�s gospel in Cing-halese were circulated, and one of them fell into the hands of the secondnbsp;person in the island, who had been raised to the highest honours in thenbsp;Boodhist priesthood. It is usual for the Cinghalese to have a great feastnbsp;there times a year, at which they read in the Boodhist writings of thenbsp;550 transmigrations. One of these is read by the chief person presentnbsp;at the beginning of the day. This priest having read the Gospel whichnbsp;he had obtained, he was struck with its contents ; and on this occasionnbsp;it was produced by him, and read to the assembled multitude. Thisnbsp;native is now become a clergyman of the Church of England.� t Thenbsp;Bible Society was the first to publish a complete copy of the Scripturesnbsp;into Cinghalese, and a complete version of the New Testament intonbsp;Indo-Portuguese, which is spoken in Ceylon by a great number of thenbsp;mixed population of the island.

See Brown�s � History of Missions,� vol. i. p. 98. See � Missionary Register� for 1826, p. 278.

The country between India and China partakes in some measure of the physical and political character of both these adjoining regions, andnbsp;comprises a number of extensive kingdoms, which have been at different periods united and separated again from each other. The surface of this great territory, according to the general view taken bynbsp;Captain Low, is formed of a series of mountain-ranges, running fromnbsp;north to south. The broad valleys between these ranges are generallynbsp;of extreme fertihty, and are watered each by a large river, which descends from the mountain-frontiers of China. The mountains havenbsp;hitherto been very little visited, being covered with extensive forests,nbsp;entangled with thick underwood and filled with wild beasts. The wholenbsp;district may be divided into four parts: 1st. The British territories,nbsp;ceded after the Burmese war in 1824 ; 2nd. The kingdom of Ava, ornbsp;Burmah ; 3rd. The kingdom of Siam ; and 4th. The empire of Assam,nbsp;or Cochin China, comprising Cambodia and Tonquin.

To ascertain the exact amount of the population of India beyond the Ganges, is a question of extrerne uncertainty. Major Symes computesnbsp;it at 17,000,000, but Captain Cox considers this calculation very muchnbsp;over-rated, and his total of 8,000,000 is conceived to be much nearernbsp;the truth.*

The territories ceded to Britain consist of Assam, with some appended provinces : the former kingdom of Arracan, the provinces of Martaban,nbsp;Tavoy, Mergui, and Tenasserim, stretching along the western coast ofnbsp;the Malayan peninsula and of Malacca itself, including the islands ofnbsp;Penang, and Singapore. Assam is an extensive territory, east of Bengal, bounded on the north by very lofty mountains, and watered bynbsp;upwards of sixty rivers, which give to the land a luxuriant fertility, but

the uncivilized state of the inhabitants renders the gifts of nature nearly fruitless. A large extent has been found covered with the tea-plant, tonbsp;improve which the British have employed Chinese cultivators, and it isnbsp;hoped it may become an important branch of commerce. Munnipore,nbsp;the capital of Assam, was nearly destroyed in the Burmese war.

Arracan reaches about 500 miles along the eastern coast of the Bay of Bengal, and its width extends about 100 miles.* It is divided intonbsp;four states or districts, Akyab, Ramree, Sandowah, and Aeng. Thenbsp;Town of Arracan is now reduced to a small place, containing only aboutnbsp;3000 inhabitants, and the trade has passed to Akyab, a town built bynbsp;the British, at the mouth of the river, on a spot favourable for healthnbsp;and commerce, and which is now increasing rapidly. This country isnbsp;bounded on the east by lofty mountains, covered with thick jungle andnbsp;forest, and its rocky coast furnishes no good harbours but those ofnbsp;Amherst, Tavoy, and Mergui.

After the conclusion of the Burmese war in 1826, Amherst was the first town built by the British, but Maulmein, twenty-five miles higher upnbsp;the Salwen or Martaban river, was soon discovered to be a more healthynbsp;spot, therefore the trade was removed to the latter place. At Amherstnbsp;is the grave of Mrs. Judson, the wife of the American missionary whonbsp;went to Burmah in 1812. This truly excellent and devoted lady breathednbsp;her last, aged 37, October 26, 1826, during the absence of her husbandnbsp;at Ava, who had accompanied Mr. Crawford, the British Commissionernbsp;for the newly-ceded provinces, on an embassy to that capital, with anbsp;view of obtaining the consent of the King of Ava to preach the Christian religion in his dominions. She was therefore unattended at thenbsp;last by a single friend or relative ; but her trust was in God, and henbsp;never forsook her throughout all her toils and troubles ! Mrs, Judsonnbsp;was a martyr to the cause of establishing the Gospel among the Burmese, and the hardships and sufferings she went through during thenbsp;two years of the war at that cruel court, are perhaps unequalled in thenbsp;history of modern missions.

Maulmein was chosen by the British as an advantageous post for a military station ; and a town rapidly sprung up where before was nothingnbsp;but jungle. In 1836 it contained 18,000 souls. It is very salubrious,nbsp;and gentlemen of the Company�s service are glad to resort thither fornbsp;health from the opposite shore of the Bay of Bengal. The city is wellnbsp;laid out and planted with trees to a considerable extent. It is the capital of British Burmah, and the commissioner resides there. The Englishnbsp;have a garrison and some artillery, and there is a trade carried on with

Rangoon, Penang, Calcutta, and Madras.* There is a capacious English church, and the Company have a chaplain there. The English Baptistsnbsp;likewise have a chapel.

Tavoy is a Burman town, built in good order and well shaded with rows of trees, and exhibiting some stir of business ; good vessels arenbsp;built here and a trade maintained with the chief places along the coastnbsp;from Singapore to Canton. The English have made it one of their military stations. In 1836 Tavoy contained 9145 inhabitants, composed ofnbsp;Burmans, Chinese, Malabars, Malays, and Mussulmans. The seaporttown of Mergui is beautifully situated on the slope of a hiU, at the entrance of the Tenasserim river. It it thickly built, and its regular streetsnbsp;sheltered from the sun by fine fruit and other trees, almost as close as anbsp;forest.t

Tenasserim was once a large city, but it now contains only 256 inhabitants. It is situated forty miles up the river from Mergui.nbsp;The islands on the Tenasserim coast are both numerous and thicklynbsp;peopled; and in 1837 had never been visited by any Christian missionaries. � Rangoon, which is not included in the ceded districts, is a miserable town in a low swampy country, composed chiefly of native bamboonbsp;huts. The population was estimated in 1837 at 50,000. The Burmannbsp;Empire has now no other sea-port left to it but Rangoon, with the exception of Bassein, on another branch of the great Irrawaddy river,nbsp;which is a place of very little trade. Two miles from Rangoon is thenbsp;celebrated pagoda of Shoo-Dagon. (Shoo, or Shoe, implies golden}.nbsp;It is grand and magnificent in the extreme.

Pegu was formerly a large city, and the capital of the kingdom of the same name, which was subdued by one of the kings of Ava, when thisnbsp;once proud city was nearly destroyed by its relentless conqueror, and itnbsp;is now only a wretched village. At Prome, which is situated some waynbsp;farther up the Irrawaddy river, is another enormous pagoda, scarcelynbsp;less magnificent than that of Shoo-Dagon at Rangoon. Indeed in Bur-mah, nothing scarcely ever remains of decayed or deserted cities butnbsp;the pagodas and kioungs (or monasteries) which being always built ofnbsp;brick, and stuccoed and gilded over, seem to defy the ravages of time ;nbsp;whereas the houses being mostly built of bamboo, and thatched withnbsp;leaves, fall to pieces very soon after they are abandoned. A little further up the Irrawaddy, near where the city of Paghan once stood, is thenbsp;Poo-o-dong pagoda, where the print of Gaudhma�s foot is to be seen,nbsp;and this was the idol�s chief residence. The soil and climate of the valleysnbsp;of Burmah are favourable to the growth of indigo ; but no greater quan-

* See H. Malcom�s � Travels in Burmah,� Chambers�s Edit. p. 21. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid. J Ibid.

tity of this product is grown than is consumed by the natives in dyeing their cloths. The stately tamarind-tree appears among the hills as soonnbsp;as you quit the flat swampy delta of the Irrawaddy, or Rangoon river :nbsp;numberless small boats are continually passing up laden with rice fornbsp;Ava, as the neighbourhood of that city is not nearly so fertile as thenbsp;southern provinces. About twenty-eight days� sail up the Irrawaddynbsp;from Rangoon you come to the oil-wells, which are here 400 in number,nbsp;from two to three hundred feet in depth, and occupy a space of aboutnbsp;twelve square miles.* The temperature of the oil, when raised to thenbsp;top, is eighty-nine degrees. An earthen pot is lowered into the well,nbsp;and drawn up over a beam thrown across the mouth, by two men running oft' with the rope. The pot is then emptied into a pool, where thenbsp;water with which it is mixed, subsides, and the oil is drawn off pure.nbsp;It is then ready for exportation. A duty of one-twentieth of its price isnbsp;paid to the king of Ava. This mineral oil is commonly known by thenbsp;name of petroleum. The region in which it is found is very rugged andnbsp;desolate, and only one plant, resembling the prickly pear, finds here anbsp;congenial soil. Between the oil-wells and Ava are many lofty gildednbsp;pagodas, the architecture of which differs from those of the more southerly provinces of the empire, and a mixture of the Grecian style is to benbsp;traced. There, large cities once stood, but the country now is apparently destitute of the means of supporting human life. The city ofnbsp;Ava, or the � Golden City,� as it is called by the Burmans, is 400 milesnbsp;from Rangoon. In sailing up the Irrawaddy to Ava, in 1837, Mr. Malcolm passed 82 cities, towns, and villages ; and 657 boats filled withnbsp;men, and often whole families. Umerapoora (i. e. Immortal City) isnbsp;seven miles north of Ava ; it was built by a king of Burmah, who fanciednbsp;to remove the royal residence and seat of government to this spot, butnbsp;he afterwards returned to Ava, and this is now the seat of government.

The climate of Ava, the greater part of the year, is delightful, the cool season lasting from October to April, when the thermometer varies fromnbsp;40 to 50 degrees at night, and from 60 to 70 in the day. In May thenbsp;heat is very great, and also in August, when the thermometer is oftennbsp;100 degrees. The periodical rains do not fall around Ava as in othernbsp;parts of Burmah, but this deficiency is in a great measure suppliednbsp;by the overflowing of the river Irrawaddy during the month of June,nbsp;which is occasioned by the melting of the snows on the lofty mountains connected with the Himalayan range. There are in these regionsnbsp;numerous mines of gold and silver, and others of iron, lead, and tin ;nbsp;but none of these metals are exported. Several of the precious stones

are also found in considerable quantities ; and there are extensive quarries of the finest white marble, which is appropriated by the Burmans exclusively to forming colossal images of Gaudhma, their principal god.nbsp;Burmah is supplied with a profusion of fine timber-trees, and variousnbsp;fruit-trees ; but these last are not so numerous, nor of so good a quality,nbsp;as those of Hindoostan. The Magnifera Indica, which bears the delicious mango, is the largest fruit-tree in the world, growing to thenbsp;height of a hundred feet, and is often twelve or fourteen, and sometimes even twenty-five feet in circumference. Tlie Palmyra palmnbsp;abounds near Ava, and the cocoa-nut palm is met with occasionally ;nbsp;but this fruit is chiefly imported from the Nicobar Islands. Thenbsp;plant called Musa paradisiaca, bears the fruit called plantain, andnbsp;grows generally about twenty feet high, and seven inches in diameter.nbsp;Like the palms, it has no branches, but the leaves and fruit grownbsp;together from the sides of the stem, and when it has arrived at its fuUnbsp;height, the weight of the fruit bends over the top of the stem, andnbsp;when ripe it hangs within reach. This plant is one of the most valuablenbsp;gifts of a gracious Providence to man throughout a great part of thenbsp;globe, as it grows wherever the mean temperature is above 65 degrees.nbsp;The plantain fruit may be had fresh almost every day in the year, andnbsp;as Mr. Malcolm observes, it affords in its numerous varieties a food ofnbsp;which none are ever tired, and by eating of which none are ever injured. The banana is the fruit of a smaller kind of musa. The leavesnbsp;of palms are used in Burmah, as in other parts of the East, for thatching their huts, and from the stems toddy and sugar are produced.nbsp;Among the fruit-trees of Burmah is the cashew-tree, whose fruit somewhat resembles a pear, and is rendered remarkable by the crescentshaped nut which grows at the end of it, which is farthest from thenbsp;stalk. Mr. Malcom says, � I presume there are not less than 150 different sorts of fruit-trees growing in this favoured country, but thenbsp;Burmans never think of grafting any, nor improving them by cultivation. The teak-tree, the most valuable timber-tree in the world, isnbsp;found abundantly in Burmah. The banian is the sacred tree of thenbsp;Burmans. Besides these are, the ebony, the fig, and the silk-cotton tree,nbsp;the floss of which the native make into beds and mattresses ; the pine,nbsp;oak, and ash grow on the mountains, as also the most gigantic cedars.nbsp;Of the bamboo there are many varieties, and of all plants it is the mostnbsp;useful to the Burmans, as they mostly construct their huts of it, andnbsp;also form it into every imaginable article of household use or convenience,nbsp;besides converting it into bridges, masts, rigging, cordage, nets, paper,nbsp;amp;c. Cotton and tobacco grow well in Burmah, as also the sugar-cane,nbsp;but the latter is not cultivated to anv extent.

The animals of Burmah are the tiger, elephant, leopard, elk, buffalo, deer, antelope, bison, rhinoceros, black bear, goat, hare, porcupine, catsnbsp;of several species, squirrels, moles, otters, and rats. Tlie buffalo is usednbsp;very generally for domestic purposes, and though a large fierce-lookingnbsp;animal, is tractable, and is easily managed. Mr. Malcom says, that, whennbsp;he saw a little child leading one by a cord passed through the nose, henbsp;was forcibly reminded of the passage in the 2nd Book of Kings, ch. xix.,nbsp;where Sennacherib is compared to a raging bull, and in verse 28, � Inbsp;will put my hook in thy nose and my bridle in thy lips, and will turnnbsp;thee back by the way by which thou earnest.� * Sheep are very scarce :nbsp;English gentlemen keep a few (for the sake of the mutton), which runnbsp;with the goats, kept for the sake of their milk ; but in these hot climates the wool of the sheep is more like the hair of the goat, and it isnbsp;often difficult for a stranger to discern between the two ; but the shepherds know each perfectly well. Mr. Malcom observes, � May not thisnbsp;illustrate Matt. xxv. 32, 33 : � He shall separate them one from another,nbsp;as a shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats.� �

! nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;SECT. II,--POLITICAL AND COLONIAL HISTORY.

The government of all the Indo-Chinese countries is that of absolute monarchy. But we shall confine ourselves chiefly to Burmah. The kingnbsp;of Ava, or Burmah, is a despotic sovereign, and is regarded as the solenbsp;lord and proprietor of life and property throughout his dominions.nbsp;Four private ministers of state, called Atwenwoon, and four public ministers of state, called Woongyees, are the organs of administration.nbsp;The latter compose the supreme court of the empire, in the name ofnbsp;which all imperial edicts are issued. The Burman empire is dividednbsp;into districts, each of which is governed by a viceroy and a court. Thenbsp;magistrates of the district courts, and the wives, relations, and favouritesnbsp;of viceroys have also the privilege of holding private courts, and ofnbsp;deciding petty causes, subject to appeal to higher authority. Next innbsp;rank to the four Woongyees, or public ministers of state, are the Woon-douks or assistant-deputies of the Woongyees. The subordinate officers both of the palace and the high court are quite innumerable.*nbsp;Among the titles by which the emperor or king of Burmah is knownnbsp;among his subjects, are these : � The Sovereign of Land and Water ; �nbsp;� The Lord of Life and Death ; � and whenever anything belonging tonbsp;him is mentioned, the epithet � golden � is attached to it, as�� It hasnbsp;reached the golden ears ; � a person � has advanced to the golden feet.�

The pride of the court of Ava is notorious, and great punctilio and ceremony is observed. The manners of the nobles are often pleasing, but they are crafty and avaricious ; and being obliged to give large presentsnbsp;to the sovereign, they have recourse to great extortion and oppressionnbsp;towards their inferiors. There is now a British resident at the court ofnbsp;Ava, since the conclusion of the war.

The revenue of the crown consists of import and export duties, a stated tax levied on every family, and excise-duties upon salt-fisheries,nbsp;fruit-trees, and petroleum ; and all ivory and elephants are the propertynbsp;of the sovereign. The government of Ava, while it taxes the people tonbsp;the utmost, affords them no security for person or property. Thusnbsp;robberies are frequent.* Princes, governors, and other principal officers, are allowed to collect the taxes from specified districts, for theirnbsp;own benefit, and generally exercise an unbridled spirit of extortion ; butnbsp;as the grants of these revenues are made and revoked by the king atnbsp;his pleasure, no great man is sure of continued wealth. Thus fromnbsp;highest to lowest, there is no encouragement to attempt the improvement of land or people.t

Most of the inland trade of the country is carried on by the Chinese, chiefly by way of Yunnan, J and there are also annual caravans of Shy-ans, who bring cotton, lacquered goods, sugar, betel-nuts, umbrellas,nbsp;and articles of dress, either upon bullocks or on their own shoulders.nbsp;The town of Monay is a great mart of inland trade, and annuallynbsp;sends a caravan to supply the British troops at Maulmein with cattle.nbsp;Burmah has considerable foreign commerce, but it is carried on innbsp;foreign vessels. Cotton is exported to Hindoostan, and articles of foodnbsp;to China.

Throughout the Burmese dominions the community is divided into eight classes, viz. the royal family, officers of state, priests, rich men,nbsp;labourers, slaves, lepers, and executioners ; and all but the three lastnbsp;may attain rank and office, which are not unfrequently held by men ofnbsp;low origin. � No public officer ever receives any fixed salary. Thenbsp;principal officers are rewarded by assignments of land, and the inferiornbsp;ones by fees, perquisites, and irregular emoluments. Extortion andnbsp;bribery are common to the whole class. The written code of lawsnbsp;is wise and good upon the whole, though severe, but it is little betternbsp;than a dead letter ; every monarch alters or adds to it, as it may pleasenbsp;him, and, under some reigns, it bears little resemblance to the original,nbsp;and it is never produced or pleaded from in any of the courts. Rulers,

* See � Murray�s Encyclopedia of Geography.� t See H. Malcom�s � Travels in Burmah,� p. 68.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Sep Map.

from highest to lowest, decide causes according to their own judgment, or more frequently according to their interest. As for seeking thenbsp;good of their country, or the promotion of justice, there seems no suchnbsp;thing thought of, except perhaps hy the king, and a few of those immediately about liim.� *

There is no standing army in Burmah, hut every landholder is required to furnish a certain number of armed men, whenever called upon, as well as a certain number of boats, containing about thirty armed mennbsp;each, besides rowers, destined to act on the great rivers that form thenbsp;channel of communication in this country.

Slavery is common in Burmah : when the father of a family is overwhelmed with debt, he has recourse to the sale of his wife and children. And the same occurs if he is taxed far beyond his ability to pay, whichnbsp;is not unfrequently the case ; but on the debt being paid, they regainnbsp;their freedom.f

The country has no coinage, and silver and lead pass in fragments of all sizes, so that the amount of every bargain is regularly weighed out,nbsp;as was done by the ancients. Gen. xxiii. 16. Ezra viii. 25. Prior tonbsp;the late war with Britain, the degree of civilization in Burmah, whatevernbsp;it might be, seemed fixed and complete ; but now the case is different.nbsp;Since Europeans have settled among them they confess their inferiority,nbsp;and, in some measure, begin to adopt our habits and manufactures.

We must now proceed to give some slight account of the war with Great Britain, as it occasioned a considerable addition to her Indiannbsp;territory. The British had, ever since 1760, possessed a territorynbsp;running along the eastern shores of the Bay of Bengal, of 120 miles innbsp;length, and 60 in breadth, of which Chittagong (or Islamabad) was thenbsp;capital, which territory bordered immediately upon the Burman dominions, The late king of Ava had become very powerful, and hadnbsp;annexed Pegu, Tenasserim, and Arracan to his dominions, besides thenbsp;northern provinces of Assam, Cassay, amp;c. Predatory excursions hadnbsp;been for some time made by the Burmese, occasioning annoyance onnbsp;the British frontier ; and all attempts to obtain redress had been metnbsp;with neglect on the part of the Burmese. It was even said that thenbsp;Emperor of Burmah meditated the ambitious design of invading Bengal,nbsp;when the English government thought proper to anticipate the blow bynbsp;a sudden irruption into the Burman empire; and, in May, 1824, annbsp;army of about 6000 English and native troops, under the command ofnbsp;Sir Archibald Campbell, arrived at Rangoon. The missionaries Hough

* See Mr. Crawford�s � Account of the Embassy to Ava.� See Preface to Mrs. Judson�s � Account of the American Mission.'

and Wade were immediately taken prisoners, and ordered to be executed, but after two days of severe suffering were regained by the British, and set at liberty. So entirely unexpected was the attack, that no resistance was made, except a few shots from the fortifications alongnbsp;the river ; and by the time the British troops had landed, the town wasnbsp;completely evacuated by the Burmans. After the lapse of nearly anbsp;year, being detained in Rangoon for want of boats to carry them up thenbsp;river, the British forces proceeded up the Irrawaddy, and halted atnbsp;Prome for the hot season. In November, 1825, they resumed theirnbsp;march to the capital ; and after a series of successes arrived at Yan-daboo, forty miles from Ava, in February, 1826, after having defeated,nbsp;in their way, army after army collected and sent against them by thenbsp;King of Ava ; who was so enraged at the English presuming to advancenbsp;upon the � golden capital,� that all foreigners were treated by him,nbsp;during this two years of suspense, with the most relentless severity ;nbsp;and Mr. and Mrs. Judson and Dr. Price experienced the most dreadfulnbsp;hardships and cruelties at the hands of a vindictive and haughty government. At length the near approach of the English army, and the prospect of the speedy capture of his city, so operated on the fears of thenbsp;monarch, who had hitherto shown himself at times ridiculously confidentnbsp;of success, that he yielded, and signed a treaty of peace, in which henbsp;ceded a large portion of his territory, and agreed to pay a large sum ofnbsp;money (about four millions and a-half of dollars) in four instalments.nbsp;He was required morever to liberate all the English and Americannbsp;prisoners.

Mr. and Mrs. Judson and Dr. Price were thus rescued from the grasp of their cruel oppressors, and on the 24th February, 1826, were received into the British camp, after enduring one year and nine monthsnbsp;almost unparalleled sufferings. The king at first used the missionarynbsp;Judson as his interpreter, and employed him to make terms with thenbsp;English, as he well understood the Burman language ; but as soon asnbsp;he found that he could have no weight to deter the British generalnbsp;from advancing on his capital, he suspected that the missionaries hadnbsp;brought the English army to Burmah, and were in league with them ;nbsp;he therefore imprisoned them, and inflicted on them every species ofnbsp;hardship and indignity.

The territories ceded to Great Britain, or. the conclusion of the war, are enumerated in the previous chapter on the geography of Burmah.nbsp;Malacca and Singapore were ceded by the Dutch to England, in 1824,nbsp;in exchange for the island of Java.*

The Burman character differs in many respects from that of the Hindoos. They are more lively, active, and industrious, and thoughnbsp;fond of repose, are never idle when they have an inducement fornbsp;exertion. When such inducement offers, they exhibit not only greatnbsp;strength, but courage and perseverance, and often accomplish what wenbsp;should scarcely think possible. They are a very temperate people, thenbsp;use of all wine, spirits, opium, amp;c. being strictly forbidden both bynbsp;their religion and their civil laws. They treat their children with greatnbsp;kindness, both males and females, and do not deny education to eithernbsp;sex. But all these valuable traits are rendered nearly useless by thenbsp;want of a higher grade of civilization, in short, the total want of allnbsp;true religion. Thieving and lying prevail among all classes, and thenbsp;rapacity and oppression of their despotic rulers occasions eflbrts tonbsp;conceal property, and produces cunning, falsehood, and perjury. Thenbsp;Burmese are grave and solemn in manner, caused probably by the despotic character of the government, and the insecurity of every enjoyment.* Mrs. Judson considered that the character of the people, undernbsp;a better government�such as would be produced by the influence of

Christianity, would become highly respectable. She says, � They possess acute minds, and lively imaginations, and are neither tierce nor revengeful.� But pride is the great characteristic of this people ; Malcom says, � Never perhaps was there a people more offensively proudnbsp;than the Burmans ; � as a nation, they gave proof of this, when thenbsp;British proceeded to invade them in the late war, for they felt perfectlynbsp;confident they must conquer or take prisoners the whole British army,nbsp;and only feared they might precipitately retire ! and the ladies at Avanbsp;bargained with the officers of the Burman army before they marchednbsp;against their invaders, how many of the �white strangers� they shouldnbsp;each have for their slaves. Gradations of rank are most minutely andnbsp;tenaciously maintained by this people, even to the colour and texture ofnbsp;their umbrellas. They are less polished in their manners than thenbsp;Hindoos. When great reverence is intended, the palms of the handsnbsp;are put together and thus raised to the forehead, as in worship, (this isnbsp;termed performing the � Sheeko,�) it is rarely done, except to a superior, and then never omitted.* Women have their place assigned themnbsp;as correctly in Burmah as in almost any nation, but at the same time,nbsp;they are considered as inferior beings, and till the Missionaries settled among them, thev received no education, excepting those of thenbsp;highest rank. Those of the lower classes clean rice, fetch water,nbsp;weave, and cook ; but aU the harder work is performed by the men.nbsp;Ladies of rank are not so listless as is generally the case with orientals ;nbsp;they furnish their domestics or slaves with employment, and presidenbsp;over them with attention.t As mention is often made in the latenbsp;accounts from the Missionaries in Burmah of the Karens, (as a peoplenbsp;distinct from the Burmans, but living in their country,) it may be asnbsp;well to state here, that Mr. Malcom in his travels, mentions them asnbsp;tribes mixed among the Burmans, using a different language, andnbsp;considered by them as inferior beings. In 1828, Mr. Boardman writes,nbsp;� They are said to be destitute of any religion ; and in their habits andnbsp;manners, resemble the Native Indians of America.�

In 1833, the American Baptist Board of Missions thus speaks of them, � The Karens live on the borders of Burmah, Siam, and China. They donbsp;not like the government of either, therefore they dwell in the junglesnbsp;and among the mountains. Their numbers amount to many hundrednbsp;thousands. They are a quiet intelligent people, living by agriculture,nbsp;and their government is patriarchal. They had no written language tillnbsp;Mr. Wade, the American Missionary formed an alphabet, and translated some tracts for their use. They have neither temples nor idols.

and were without any thing that could be dignified with the name of religion. They have a tradition of the fall of the first man by eatingnbsp;forbidden fruit, and that white men are to come and instruct them innbsp;the way of duty and happiness,�hence their readiness to receive thenbsp;Gospel. Of the hundreds mentioned in a following chapter as havingnbsp;been baptized in 1828 and 9, a great proportion were of this poornbsp;despised people.* Mrs. Boardman of the American Missionary Society writes from Tavoy, � Many of the Karens, from their travellingnbsp;forty or fifty miles over the mountains and through deserts, the hauntnbsp;of the tiger, evince a love for the Gospel seldom surpassed. They willnbsp;frequently do this to hear a sermon, or beg of us a Christian book ! �

The Burmans have been termed a reading people, but they should rather be called a � people who can read.� They have a written language ; indeed, it may be said they have two, for their sacred books arenbsp;not in the Burman language, but in Pali, which is a dialect or corruptionnbsp;of the Sanscrit. The mass of the people being wholly without books,nbsp;their reading is confined to the short written documents employed innbsp;the transaction of business. It is remarkable that so many children arenbsp;taught to read, when it is foreseen, that so little use can be made of thenbsp;acquisition. It is certainly a providential preparation for the diffusionnbsp;of the word of truth, and ought to encourage us to distribute thenbsp;Holy Scriptures among them. Their books of course must be few, asnbsp;they are ignorant of the art of printing ;t every principal citizen possesses, however, a few, and the royal library at Ava contains many thousand volumes.� Some are made of palm-leaf, the letters being scratchednbsp;with an iron-pen, others of a kind of black pasteboard, folded like a fan,nbsp;this may be written on both sides, and each portion, or fold, may benbsp;sealed up by itself, thus furnishing some idea of the book mentioned.nbsp;Rev. V. 1 ; their writings are chiefly metrical, and consist of ballads,nbsp;legends of Gaudhma, histories, astronomy, and geography; of the twonbsp;last-named sciences, they have the most false and absurd notions possible.nbsp;Their poetry is good, and they are very fond of music. The dress ofnbsp;the poor in Burmah, is a cotton cloth (called � pesso,�) four or fivenbsp;yards long, passed round the hips, and covering the legs, the endsnbsp;being gathered into a knot in front ; when not at work, they throw anbsp;part of it gracefully over their shoulders. The upper classes wear thisnbsp;of silk, and a loose jacket of the same material, or of muslin is addednbsp;in cold weather. All wear a turban of muslin, or cotton handkerchief,

on the head. Women universally wear a petticoat, called � teraine,� made of cotton or silk, lined with muslin, it reaches from the shouldersnbsp;to the ankles, and over this the higher classes, and indeed all, when notnbsp;at work, wear the In-gre, which is a loose kind of jacket, with light longnbsp;sleeves ; hoth classes wear their fine black hair very long, the men tyingnbsp;it into a knot on the top of the head, or intertwining it with theirnbsp;turbans. The custom of smoking tobacco is very common with bothnbsp;sexes, and children are taught this habit when very young. They arenbsp;also very fond of chewing a mixture called � coon,� made of differentnbsp;vegetable substances mixed with tobacco leaf ; it dyes the mouth red,nbsp;and also the teeth, if not previously blackened, which is a custom verynbsp;prevalent among all classes. The men have their legs tattooed, and thenbsp;operation is commenced at the age of eight or ten. The intendednbsp;figures, such as animals, birds, demons, amp;c., are traced with lamp-blacknbsp;soil, and pricked in with a pointed instrument. This barbarous practicenbsp;originates not only from being considered ornamental, but as a charmnbsp;against casualties. The favorite food of the Burmans, in common with allnbsp;India and China, and used by all who can afford it, is rice. It is oftennbsp;eaten without any addition, but more generally with curry, and saucesnbsp;made from various vegetables, melons, amp;o., and, except among the poor,nbsp;a little meat or fish is added. They make great use of the capsicum innbsp;seasoning their food. In the upper provinces, where rice is dearer thannbsp;in the more southerly, wheat, maize, onions, peas, beans, and plantains,nbsp;enter largely into the common diet. Though their law forbids thenbsp;taking of animal life, yet no one scruples to eat what is already dead,nbsp;indeed, very few hesitate to kill game or fish ; and thousands of thenbsp;natives are fishermen by profession ; those who are strict in their religious observance never touch meat of any kind. Their wheat is verynbsp;fine, but is never so much esteemed rs rice ; the bakers are generallynbsp;Bengalese, who grind the flour in the manner so often alluded to innbsp;Scripture, in a hand-mill. Wherever there .are Europeans, there arenbsp;now some of these bakers ; but the Missionaries, before the war, according to Mrs. Judson�s account, never tasted bread. It is now no dearernbsp;than with us. The dwellings of the Burmans have already been partlynbsp;described in a former chapter ; they are mostly built of wood or cane,nbsp;only the houses of the nobility are of brick. When thatched withnbsp;Bamboo, Mr. Malcom says they have a neat appearance. All theirnbsp;care and money are spent on their Pagodas, and Kioungs, or Monasteries.

The idolatry of the Burmans is not the Brahminism of the Hindoos, but the rival religion of Boodhism (or Buddhuism ; for different authorsnbsp;write it differently). � Boodhism is probably at this time,,and has beennbsp;for many centuries, the most prevalent form of religion upon earth.nbsp;Half the population of China, Lao, Cochin Clrna, and Ceylon ; all thatnbsp;of Cambodia, Siam, Burmah, Thibet, Tartary, Loochoo, and a greatnbsp;part of Japan, and most of the other islands of Southern Asia, are ofnbsp;this faith. Boodh, or Buddha, is a general term for divinity, and not thenbsp;name of any particular god, or idol. The followers of this false religionnbsp;assert that there have been successively four Boodhs in the world, and thatnbsp;one more is yet to come. The one worshipped at present in Burmah isnbsp;called Gaudhma, or Gaudama. They say he was born into this worldnbsp;at a date answering to the year 626 b.c. He had previously lived in fournbsp;hundred millions of worlds, and passed through innumerable conditionsnbsp;in each ; and in this world, he had been almost every sort of fly, worm,nbsp;fowl, fish, and animal, and had passed through nearly every grade andnbsp;condition of human life. Having, they say, in the course of these gradations, acquired immense merit, he at length was born son of a king ofnbsp;Magadeh (now called Behar), in Hindoostan. When grown up, hisnbsp;height was nine cubits ; his ears were so beautifully long they couldnbsp;hang upon his shoulders, his hands reached to his knees, his fingersnbsp;were of equal length, and with his tongue he could touch the end of hisnbsp;nose ; all which, they affirm were certain proofs of his divinity ! Whennbsp;in this state, his mind was enlarged, so that he remembered his formernbsp;condition and existences, and of these he rehearsed many to his followers. Five hundred and fifty of these narratives have been preserved,nbsp;and they form a very considerable portion of their � Bedagat,� or sacrednbsp;books. One relates his life and adventures as a deer, another as anbsp;monkey, elephant, fowl, amp;c. These legends are a fruitful source ofnbsp;design for Burman paiptings, and do but bring out into visible absurdity the system they would illustrate. He became Boodh at 35, andnbsp;remained so forty-five years longer ; at the end of which time, havingnbsp;performed aU sorts of meritorious acts, and promulgated many excellentnbsp;laws far and wide, he obtained nic-ban, that is, entered into annihilation.� *

* See H. Malcom�s � Travels in Burmah.� Mrs. Judson describes the nic-ban of the Burmans as meaning � the state in which there is no existence, considered by them asnbsp;the supreme good.�

At the death of Gaudama, he ordered that besides obeying his laws, his relics and image should be worshipped, and pagodas built to hisnbsp;memory, till the next Boodh should appear. The laws and sayings ofnbsp;Gaudama were reduced to writing in Ceylon, 450 years after his death,nbsp;in the Pali language, which is a corruption of the Sanscrit, and continues still the sacred language of the Burmans. It is the opinion ofnbsp;some that Boodhism is of more ancient date than Brahminism ; butnbsp;however that may be, it is well ascertained that they strove together innbsp;Hindoostan for the ascendancy, and that Boodhism was driven out of thatnbsp;country nearly two thousand years ago, and took refuge in Ceylon, fromnbsp;whence it found its way into Burmah, Siam, China, amp;c. Copies ofnbsp;portions of the Bedagat are not rare in Burmah, but entire copies arenbsp;seldom to be met with, and only in the dwellings of the priests or thenbsp;wealthy. The wording of these sacred books is not alike in all thenbsp;copies, which will account for the varied statements respecting its contents which have appeared ; the following is a very brief summary ofnbsp;the sketch that was given of it to Mr. Malcom by the priests, duringnbsp;his seven years� residence in Burmah. It runs thus :�

� The universe is composed of an infinite number of systems ; each system consists of a great central mountain, called Miyenmo, the top ofnbsp;which is flattened into a vast plain. It is surrounded by seas, and bynbsp;four great islands, each of which is again surrounded by five hundrednbsp;smaller ones. Each system also includes celestial and infernal regions.nbsp;The four great islands have each a different shape and colour peculiarnbsp;to itself, and their inhabitants have each their colour and the shape ofnbsp;their faces conformed to the shape and colour of the island on whichnbsp;they dwell. Ours, which is the southern island, is oval, and of a darknbsp;ruby tint. The inhabitants of the eastern, western, and southernnbsp;islands, practise agriculture and the arts, but those of the southernnbsp;have no such employments : there is a tree there, which yields allnbsp;manner of garments, meat, fish, amp;c. They have no sorrow nor pains,nbsp;and each individual lives just one thousand years. The inhabitants ofnbsp;these three other islands are always confined to the same abode andnbsp;existence ; but those of the southern island have this advantage, thatnbsp;they may, by merit, rise to the several heavens, and even to � nic-ban �nbsp;itself. When by the power of fate, a system is to be destroyed, itnbsp;occurs either by fire, wamp;ter, or wind ; our own world has been repeatedly destroyed and renewed. After its last destruction it lay in anbsp;state of chaos many ages, when the crust of the earth recoverednbsp;firmness, and was covered with a thin coat of sweet butter, the gratefulnbsp;fragrance of which ascending to the heavens, celestial beings were fillednbsp;with a desire to eat it ; and assuming a human shape, came down in

large numbers. Their bodies were luminous, and they needed no other light ; but they became dark as they grew quarrelsome and corrupt.nbsp;In their distress, the sun appears, and afterwards the moon and stars.nbsp;The race becoming more degenerate, they were obliged to choose anbsp;king ; quarrels multiplied and men dispersed over the world ; climate,nbsp;water, and food, then produced the varieties we see among nations.

�The celestial regions consist of twenty-six heavens, one above another ; in the first six the inhabitants are called Nats ; * they have bodies and souls like ourselves, but they perform no labour, for the trees therenbsp;bear them every kind of food in profusion. In the sixteen heavens, thenbsp;inhabitants are pure matter, and, in the last four, pure spirit. Thenbsp;infernal regions consist of eight principal hells, four of which inflictnbsp;punishment by heat, and four by cold.� (These evils are all minutelynbsp;described in the writings of the Bedagat, or sacred books, and oftennbsp;depicted in the drawings of native artists.f)

� To deny or disbelieve the doctrines of Gaudama incurs eternal punishment by fire. Merit may be obtained by good conduct in any of these hells ; so that, unless the sufferer has incurred eternal torment,nbsp;he may rise again, and become a fly, worm, beast, man, gnat, amp;c.�

Such is a very brief view of the belief of the Boodhist creed ! What a picture of the fallen mind of man does it represent to us ! Well mightnbsp;the apostle say of the heathen, � Their foolish hearts were darkened.�nbsp;Dark indeed must have been the understandings of those who inventednbsp;such a tissue of falsehood and absurdity ; and how can we wonder,nbsp;while such nonsense as this is the foundation of their faith, that thesenbsp;poor people should be buried in ignorance, and sin, and degradation ?nbsp;Such, reader, should you and I have been, but for the inestimable giftnbsp;of divine revelation. How should we thank the great and good God,nbsp;that we possess the pure words of the blessed gospel�to be � a lampnbsp;unto our feet, and a light unto our paths ! � Oh, that we might prizenbsp;and value our Bibles more, and pray with more earnestness to see andnbsp;feel their beauty and meaning. Then, and not till then, shall we strivenbsp;with greater energy to dispense this best of blessings to the nationsnbsp;around, who are sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death. Butnbsp;we must make a few more remarks upon the practice and worship ofnbsp;Boodhisin,

Of any eternal, self-existent Being, the religion of the Boodhist affords no intimation ; nor of any creation or over-ruling Providence. From

* These beings are often worshipped by the ignorant and poor of Buiniah, and have images representing them as attendants to Ga�dama ; but this worship is not authorisednbsp;by their religion, and seems rather to be a remnant of the ancient polytheism of thesenbsp;regions.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� gee IT. Malcom�s � Travels in Burmah.�

the annihilation of one Boodh to the developement of the next, there is literally no God. Intervening generations must worship his image,nbsp;relics, law, and priests, and keep his sayings ; the degree of merit theynbsp;can obtain, by avoiding sins, and performing virtues, is the sole hope ofnbsp;the Boodhist ; and of the pardon of sins they have no idea whatever !nbsp;The most meritorious deed they can perform is making an image of Gau-dama, and that according to its size and value. Another way of obtainingnbsp;merit is the frequent repetition of the words�� Aneitsa, Doke-kha, Ahnbsp;nah-ta,� which imply, � I am subject to outward evil, I am subject tonbsp;mental evU, I cannot possibly get away from evil.� They use a string ofnbsp;beads in saying over this prayer or soliloquy, passing one through theirnbsp;fingers at each repetition. Their images and sacred edifices pass throughnbsp;no form of consecration, as is the case with the idols of the Brahmins.nbsp;The intelligent Burmans sometimes deny that they worship their images ;nbsp;they say they only use them to remind them of Gaudama, and in obedience to his commands ; hence they feel no horror at seeing themnbsp;decay, and the country is full of such as have gone to ruin. Near allnbsp;towns are a number of zayats, which are large square buildings, erectednbsp;to contain collections of idols, amounting in some cases to hundreds,nbsp;and many of them of colossal size.* The � zayats� are also sometimesnbsp;used for another purpose, that of places of rest and shelter for travellers,nbsp;or those who are carrying their ofi�rings to the idol. Like the choultries of the Hindoos, they are of great advantage to the traveller in anbsp;hot climate, where there are no inns. A foreigner may lodge in themnbsp;as long as he pleases, and the common people bring him as much foodnbsp;as he requires, and a clean mat to lie down on, till he is ready to go onnbsp;his journey again.f

Their pagodas are very numerous, as we have before stated ; they are very lofty, and though of great size at the bottom, usually terminate innbsp;a point at the top, and are generally gilded. They are beautifully carvednbsp;and ornamented within and without. It seems difficult to say of whatnbsp;use they are, for they are not built for places of worship, but merely itnbsp;appears erected in honour of their false God. They sometimes con-tam treasure in a small dark apartment ; but they are nearly solid,nbsp;and, Mr. Malcom observes, not verv unlike in form to the pyramids ofnbsp;Egypt.J

* Mr. Malcom describes some caves twenty miles above Maulmein that are filled with idols! there were literally thousands. He says, �Nowhere in the country havenbsp;I seen such a display of wealth, ingenuity, and industry ; many of them are of the finestnbsp;white marble, covered over with gold leaf.�

� There are in Tavoy 1000 pagodas, and 200 kyoungs or monasteries for Buddhist priests. See � Missionary Register� for 1837, p. 94.

There are a vast number of Boodhist priests in Burmah and the adjacent countries. The proportion the priests bear to the people is about one to thirty. Any one may become a priest, and any priest may returnnbsp;to secular life at pleasure. They take no part at all in public worship,nbsp;and very seldom preach. They live in kyouns, or kyoungs (which arenbsp;sohd, substantial, and often very splendid edifices), and instruct the boysnbsp;in reading who come to them ; but those instructed by them scarcelynbsp;ever understand what they read. It is required by their sacred books,nbsp;that no priest should marry, nor wear their hair long ; they must shavenbsp;their heads, and not wear a turban or use an umbrella ; but they carry anbsp;large fan to protect them from the rays of the sun. They are to benbsp;clothed in rags, and go about to beg their food of the people ; but except in the latter instance, they do not adhere very strictly to any ofnbsp;these prescribed rules. Most of them spend their time in idleness ;nbsp;they walk daily from house to house to beg food and clothes, which arenbsp;always liberally bestowed. The Burmans have four worship days innbsp;every lunar month, but they have no sabbath ; no one approaches thenbsp;pagodas without presenting an offering, though it be but a flower, or anbsp;few sprigs plucked from a bush in passing. A tasteful nosegay is thenbsp;most common offering ; but those who can afford it give food and raiment : the food is always nicely cooked and arranged in plates made ofnbsp;the plantain leaf. It has been observed by travellers that the Burmansnbsp;are remarkably tolerant in religious matters. Foreigners, it is true, arenbsp;allowed the full exercise of their own religion, but no Burman may joinnbsp;any of these religions under the severest penalties. In nothing doesnbsp;the government show its despotism more than in its measures for suppressing all religious innovations, and supporting the established systems, To sum up these imperfect remarks we will quote the words ofnbsp;the missionary Malcom, in the last chapter of his Travels in Burmah :nbsp;� The philosophy of Boodhism is not exceeded in folly by any rehgion,nbsp;ancient or modem, but its lessons of practical piety are numerous. Didnbsp;the people but act up to the precepts taught by their sacred books, oppression and injury would not be so common among them ; but it is anbsp;system of religion without a God : it is literally atheism. True, it hasnbsp;no sanguinary or impure observances, no unholy and ferocious duties,nbsp;no self-inflicting tortures, no tyrannizing priesthood,�and the inventionnbsp;of caste (which constitutes one of the firmest bulwarks with whichnbsp;Satan has fortified the strong holds of idolatry, in Hindoostan) is notnbsp;known in Burmah and the adjacent countries,�but the very base onnbsp;which Boodhism rests is false ; its system of merit corrupts and pervertsnbsp;to evil all its best precepts ; it presents nothing to Love, for its deity isnbsp;dead !�nothing as an object for acting aright but self, and nothing for

man�s highest ambitions but annihilation. The Boodhist�s doctrine of merit destroys all gratitude ; if he is well off, it is because he deservesnbsp;to be so, and it makes him the proudest of mortals, for he conceivesnbsp;that incalculable merit, during previous incarnations, has been gained,nbsp;to give him the honour of now wearing human nature ! He allows evilnbsp;to be balanced with good by a scale which reduces sin to the shadow ofnbsp;a trifle ; to �sheeko� (or, to make obeisance) to a pagoda, or oifer a flowernbsp;to an idol ; to feed the priests, or set a pot of cool water by the wayside, is supposed to cancel a multitude of sins. The making an idol, isnbsp;substituted for all repentance, for all inward excellence, and every outward charity ! But we need not multiply these remarks. It is enoughnbsp;to awaken our sympathy to know that this religion has no power tonbsp;save, and that the people who follow it are perishing in their sins.nbsp;May the favoured ones of this land discharge their duty to these millions of benighted heathens. � *

� O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven ? and rudest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathent and in thine hand is there not polver and might, so that nonenbsp;is aljle to u'iihetand thee t�2 Chron. xx. 6.

The first Protestant missionaries who visited these countries were Messrs. Chater and Carey, (English Baptists) who went to Burmah.nbsp;from Serampore in 1807. But they were able to efiect nothing, exceptnbsp;that they made some slight progress in learning the language, andnbsp;translated six chapters of the Gospel of St. Matthew.

The manner in which the establishment of the American Baptist mission to Burmah was brought about, was very remarkable, and shows forcibly how the Lord can enable even the wrath of man to turn to hisnbsp;praise and glory. The American missionaries, Mr. and Mrs. Judson, onnbsp;their arrival in Bengal, in 1812, received orders from the East Indiannbsp;Government to return immediately to America ; but this command wasnbsp;afterwards modified by permitting them to go to the Isle of France.nbsp;They wdth difficulty arrived there, as in the mean time another peremptory order had arrived, that they were to go to England. After waitingnbsp;for some time at the Isle of France for a vessel to take them to some ofnbsp;the Eastern Islands, they sailed for Madras. On their landing theynbsp;were immediately reported to the supreme government of Bengal ; andnbsp;as they expected every day an order from Calcutta to send them to

England, they thought it better to leave Madras before such instructions should be received. Accordingly, Mr. Judson enquired the destinationnbsp;of the vessels lying then in the Madras roads, and found that none wouldnbsp;sail that season except a small Portuguese vessel for Rangoon. Thisnbsp;was a great disappointment, as they had been inclined to look upon anbsp;mission to the Burman empire with feelings of peculiar horror, fromnbsp;the sanguinary character of the government of the country, and the barbarity of the people. But there was now no alternative ; and as theynbsp;must either sail for Rangoon, or be seized, by the orders of the Eastnbsp;India Company, and sent to England, they preferred the former,�judging that the hand of Providence pointed out for them the way in whichnbsp;they should go.*

In 1813, Mr, and Mrs. Judson arrived at Rangoon, and commenced the establishment of a mission. They laboured many years to make themselves acquainted with the difficult language of the country,nbsp;without the aid of either grammar, dictionary, or interpreter, and theirnbsp;hardships and difficulties were considerably increased by the extortionate character of the Burmans, who tried to cheat them on everynbsp;occasion. Their health several times declined so much, that they werenbsp;obliged to leave Burmah for change of air and climate, and encounterednbsp;dangers and distresses by sea and by land. In 1819, Mr. Judsonnbsp;opened a place of worship, and began preaching in the Burman language to a small native audience, having previously translated St.nbsp;Matthew�s Gospel, and some of the epistles, and written a summary ofnbsp;Christian doctrine and practice, a catechism, a grammar, and a dictionarynbsp;in Burman. His efforts in preaching the Gospel, were blessed in June,nbsp;1819, by the conversion of a Burman ; and in the course of the nextnbsp;two years, this little church numbered thirteen sincere native Christians, who throughout their lives, all continued firm to the faith ofnbsp;Jesus, and in many instances adorned the doctrine of their Saviour;nbsp;one of them a poor fisherman, named Moung Ing, continued with Mrs.nbsp;Judson through all her sufferings in the time of the war. Amongnbsp;the Converts were two females who died rejoicing in their Saviour,nbsp;soon after the conclusion of the peace in 1828. Mrs. Judson tooknbsp;great pains with the Burman women, who could be prevailed upon tonbsp;attend her instructions, and had commenced a female school, when thenbsp;war commenced. In 1816, the Serampore Mission had sent out anbsp;printing press as a present to the American Missionaries, who were alsonbsp;at this time, joined by Mr. and Mrs. Hough, and shortly after by Mr.nbsp;and Mrs. Wade.

When the war took place in 1824, the Mission at Rangoon was of course broken up, and the converts were dispersed, but amidst allnbsp;their persecutions and dangers, they adhered firmly to the truth. Atnbsp;the close of the war, as the Emperor of Burmah would not give hisnbsp;consent that any of his subjects should embrace Christianity, thenbsp;Missionaries removed from Rangoon, and established themselves atnbsp;Amherst and Maulmein, in the territory newly ceded to Great Britain,nbsp;where the converts would be less subject to persecution, and Mrs.nbsp;Judson opened a school for female orphans, and Mr. Judson another fornbsp;boys. Many tracts had been translated into the Burman language.nbsp;The first inquirer was drawn to the Zayat, (or place of Christian worship,) by means of a religious tract,�and Mah Menla, the most piousnbsp;of the first two female converts, received under providence her firstnbsp;impressions from a tract.* In 1826, Mrs. Judson was called to hernbsp;rest : some short notices of her death have been already given. (Letnbsp;those who wish to know more of this faithful and devoted Missionary�snbsp;wife, peruse her Memoirs, written by J. D. Knowles, of Boston, onenbsp;volume octavo, pubhshed in London, 1829.) In 1828, Mr. and Mrs.nbsp;Boardman joined the Mission, and soon after, the first Karen convertnbsp;was baptized at Tavoy, one of the new stations in the British territory.nbsp;Two of the early Burman converts �were employed as teachers at Maulmein, and made frequent missionary tours among their benighted countrymen. Mrs. Wade continued Mrs. Judson�s female school, and Dr.nbsp;Judson recommenced public worship for the natives, about seventy ofnbsp;whom attended. It may be mentioned here, that the British Baptistsnbsp;commenced a Mission at Akyab, at the mouth of the Arracan river, innbsp;1821, and in the course of the next two years, eight converts were thenbsp;fruits of their labours, four of whom were employed as teachers. Innbsp;1839, their Mission was transferred to the American Baptists.

In 1819, The London Missionary Society established Missions at Penang Island, and at Singapore. The former island was transferred to the East India Company in 1786, and contained in 1828,nbsp;55,000 inhabitants. Here the Society had seven schools for Malays,nbsp;and four for Chinese, at the period of which we are treating,nbsp;(1828.)-t Singapore is a place of great trade, and its inhabitants innbsp;1839 numbered about 16,000, consisting chiefly of Chinese, I here thenbsp;London Missionary Society had at this time four Missionaries, and werenbsp;actively engaged distributing the scriptures and tracts among thenbsp;Chinese, and various other trading vessels annually frequenting the

* See Mrs. Judson�s � Memoirs,� p. 316. f See �Missionary Register� for 1831, p, 28.nbsp;� In 1834 this number had increased to 19,432 males, and 6,897 females.

port. It was in 1815, that the London Missionary Society estabhshed their Mission at Malacca, where they founded an Anglo-Chinese Collegenbsp;for the benefit of Europeans, wishing to learn the Chinese language,nbsp;and also for the instruction of Chinese students. In 1828, all thesenbsp;three places either belonged to, or were under the authority of, the British ; and there was a government chaplain at Singapore. In 1828,nbsp;fourteen Europeans, many of them afterwards missionaries, and fifteennbsp;Chinese students had been educated at the college. The Chinese werenbsp;instructed in the Christian religion as well as the English language,nbsp;mathematics, geography, astronomy, amp;c.* This college has now beennbsp;transferred to the island of Hong Kong, on the coast of China, whichnbsp;became a British possession in 1841.

In 1829, Mr. GutzlalF and another missionary were sent by the Netherlands Missionary Society to Bankok, the capital of Siam, which then contained out of a population of 400,000, as many as 360,000 Chinesenbsp;and their descendants. The Siamese Government had concluded anbsp;treaty with Great Britain, and this place was considered as a promisingnbsp;field for missionary enterprize, the inhabitants carrying on a very considerable trade with China. Mr. Gutzlaff was also of great use to themnbsp;as a physician, besides assisting to prepare a translation of the Scriptures into Siamese.!

But to return to the American Baptist mission in Burmah : at Maul-mein, in 1828, thirty converts had been added to this little promising church ; and in 1830, seven assistants in the missionary work were natives. This year (1830) Dr. Judson writes, � It is affecting to see withnbsp;what eagerness the poor people, men and women, listen to the sound ofnbsp;the Gospel in their own native tongue, how they sometimes gather closenbsp;round the reader and listen with their eyes as well as their ears.� Atnbsp;Rangoon, where the mission was first established, one of the old converts, Moung Thaba, who had left the mission at the time of the war,nbsp;now returned, and began doing what he could among his brethren tonbsp;plant again the standard of the cross, going from village to villagenbsp;preaching the glad tidings of the Gospel ; and many shewed an inclination to listen. At Rangoon, Dr. Judson writes, October 1830 : �During the past three years above a hundred natives have been baptized atnbsp;this place, at Maulmein, and Tavoy.� The boys boarding-school atnbsp;Tavoy had, at this time, twelve scholars and in the past year 72,503nbsp;tracts and portions of the Scriptures had been distributed. The printing-press had been removed from Rangoon to Maulmein. In 1832

* In 1830 the total number of students in the college at Mjilacca was 33. See � Missionary Register� for 1830.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� Ibid, for 1832, p. 32.

Mr. Gutzlaff finished (after very hard labour) his New Testament in the Siamese language, which was printed at Singapore.* He then sat out onnbsp;his first voyage along the coast of China, distributing tracts and portionsnbsp;of the scriptures, and practising medicine successfully. God had raisednbsp;up a peculiarly fitting person in this talented missionary for benefitting thenbsp;Chinese ; his facihty in acquiring foreign languages was quite remarkable. He would speak Mandarin fluently ; and wonderfully united thenbsp;two professions of physician and clergyman.f The Report of the Anglo-Chinese college at Malacca for this year, 1832, states, � It is satisfactorynbsp;to know that the indirect influence of the college over both the Maho-dan and the Chinese population, is far from inconsiderable.�

In Burmah the missionaries write, in 1833, that the Emperor still opposed them, but that on the subject of tracts, the Government wasnbsp;indilferent, that the people carried them to their homes and would readnbsp;them by lamp-light to their surrounding families. The converts thisnbsp;year had increased to 200. There had always been a few Roman Catholics at Ava, descendants of Portuguese ; but they had never attemptednbsp;to convert the natives. In 1834, some priests were sent over to Burmah from Italy, and settling near Tavoy and Mergui, attempted to drawnbsp;away the Protestant converts from their missionaries.): In 1835, besidesnbsp;the nine American missionaries and sixteen school-teachers, there werenbsp;twenty-two native preachers and assistants in British Burmah, who werenbsp;rendering important aid to the mission.� By the year 1836 the numbernbsp;of converts at Tavoy, amp;c., had so much increased, that we And therenbsp;were 248 Karen communicants and four schools in Karen villages. Anbsp;second printing-press had been sent to Burmah, and was established atnbsp;Ava. The American missionaries this year opened a new mission atnbsp;Sudya, in Assam, among the Shyans, or Shans, a numerous racenbsp;spreading themselves over the country which connects Burmah, Siam,nbsp;and China, and whose language differed but little from the Burmesenbsp;and Siamese. In 1833 an American missionary went to Bankok, andnbsp;assisted in carrying the Siamese New Testament through the press.nbsp;The American board of Missions also established a mission at this city,nbsp;but met with some opposition at first starting.

From the latest accounts received, the Burman native Christians at Rangoon were suffering from the inroads of Romish emissaries. Atnbsp;Amherst there were two schools containing sixty pupils. Mr. Judson�snbsp;Burman Grammar had been printed, and also the Epistles, from Galatians to Romans, in the Peguan language ; and a Burmese religious

newspaper was commenced, designed for the benefit of native Christians. The Karen churches were allowed the exercise of their religious worship unmolested by the Burmese Government ; whole villages, it isnbsp;said, are turned to God, especially in the Bassein province. A nativenbsp;missionary society had been in operation for some years at Tavoy, whichnbsp;supports seven native labourers ; and within the limits of the Tavoy,nbsp;Maulmein, and Rangoon missions, there were between twenty and thirtynbsp;Karen churches containing upwards of 1500 members. Thus has thenbsp;Lord blessed the indefatigable zeal and labours of these Americannbsp;missionaries, while their English brethren at Singapore, Malacca, amp;c.nbsp;have greatly contributed in preparing the way for the preaching of thenbsp;Gospel in China. In 1836 the Church Missionary Society projected anbsp;mission to Singapore, and for this purpose entered into correspondencenbsp;with Dr. Morrison and Mr. Gutzlaff ; but before the letters had reachednbsp;their destination. Dr. Morrison had been called to his eternal rest.

Regarding the American Presbyterian mission to Siam, the Society�s Annual Report for 1841, thus writes : � There is a considerable numbernbsp;here who profess to be convinced of the folly of idol-worship, and tonbsp;have forsaken it ; but how many of these are sincere we cannot judge.nbsp;A great number among their influential men acknowledge their disbeliefnbsp;of the system of the universe, as taught in their sacred books, of whichnbsp;there are in Siam some thousands. There is this peculiarity in thenbsp;Siamese mission,�it is the only one of our missions situated in a countrynbsp;governed by an independent heathen ruler, and having an establishednbsp;system of religion of its own,�for British power restrains the heathennbsp;rulers in continental India and Ceylon, and Dutch power those of thenbsp;Indian Archipelago ; and in the accessible portions of China,�^missionaries have laboured under commercial regulations. At the Sandwichnbsp;Islands, among the North American Indians, and among the Africannbsp;tribes, nothing like a system of religion existed when the Americannbsp;missionaries first approached them ; but in Siam we find an independentnbsp;government, and one intimately connected with the administration ofnbsp;the existing religious system, and that system, too, one of the mostnbsp;comphcated and complete in the heathen world. The Boodhist priestnbsp;is eminently proud and intolerant, and Boodhism is a state-religion innbsp;Siam, Burmah, and China, though in the last-named country it is not thenbsp;only religion with which the Government acknowledges a connection.� *

* These two first-named missions are for the most part transferred to China. t Suspended in 1824 ; resumed in 1833.

China Proper contains a broad expanse of densely populated country, forming nearly a square, two sides of which are bounded by sea, andnbsp;two by land. The sea is the great Pacific Ocean, here broken intonbsp;several bays or gulfs, the chief of which are the Chinese Sea, which isnbsp;enclosed by Borneo, the Phihppines, and Formosa ; and the Yellow Sea,nbsp;bounded by Tartary and Corea. The land boundary consists of a rangenbsp;of thinly-peopled tracts, occupied by wandering and barbarous tribes ofnbsp;Mandshoo Tartars, Mongols, Kalkas, and Eluths, and by the mountainousnbsp;country of Thibet. The Emperor of China holds all this surroundingnbsp;country, a great part of which is desert, in � kind of loose militarynbsp;occupation, and as tributary to his empire, without attempting to imposenbsp;upon it the laws or policy of China itself. At the same time, thenbsp;whole of this very extensive frontier is guarded with equal carenbsp;against the approach of foreigners. Until the conclusion of the latenbsp;war with England, communication was left open at two solitary pointsnbsp;only, viz. the port of Canton to the maritime nations, and the singlenbsp;town of Kiachta on the frontiers of Siberia, to the subjects of Russia.

The countries marked in the map as Cambodia, Cochin China, and Tonquin, do not belong to the empire of China, but constitute a separate kingdom, called Anan, or Cochin China. Yunnan is the mostnbsp;southernly portion of China Proper, and is very mountainous, inhabitednbsp;by a hardy race of people, whom the Chinese have never been able tonbsp;subdue. They are, therefore, under the government of their own chiefs,nbsp;to whom they pay almost implicit submission.*

China Proper is estimated to be eight times larger than France ; and consists, in a great measure, of a rich, level, and highly-cultivatednbsp;country. Towards the north, however, there are mountains of consi-

derable height, over which the Great Wall of China, 1500 miles in extent, was erected, two thousand years ago, to defend China from thenbsp;inroads of the Tartar tribes.* The pride of China, and the chief sourcenbsp;of her wealth and fertility, are her mighty rivers, which intersect thenbsp;entire country. The Hoang-ho, or Yellow River, and the Kiang-ku, ornbsp;Yang-tze-kiang, both rise in the distant unknown wilds of Tartary, andnbsp;traversing China in every direction, by a multitude of branches, whichnbsp;are again united by numberless canals, form the chief and almost onlynbsp;mode of communication throughout the whole of China. The Grandnbsp;Canal of China, which runs parallel to the sea, from the Pei-ho, ornbsp;North River, to near Shang-hai and Chusan, a distance of seven hundred miles, was made four hundred years before any canal was known innbsp;Europe.

The three cities of China most known to Europeans, are Pekin, in the north, the seat of government ; Nankin, below the mouth of thenbsp;Yellow River, the residence of a viceroy ; and Canton, the chief commercial city of the empire. The province in which Pekin is situated, is.nbsp;from its latitude and its elevated position, comparatively cold ; ice prevails for three or four months in the year, and only millet and the morenbsp;hardy kinds of grain are grown. The city of Pekin is situated fortynbsp;miles from the Great Wall, and is twenty-five miles in circumference,nbsp;and surrounded by very high walls, which completely hide the city fromnbsp;those who are without. It consists of two parts, the Chinese and thenbsp;Tartar cities ; the former is the most populous, and the latter containsnbsp;' the imperial palace and gardens, which are of great extent. The tractnbsp;in which Pekin stands is sandy and barren, but the extensive canals arenbsp;well adapted to supplying the vast population of the city with rice andnbsp;grain from the southern and more fertile provinces.f

The country from Pekin to Nankin is full of populous cities, towns, and villages, which line the banks of the rivers and canals in every direction. Nankin was formerly the capital of the empire, and its loftynbsp;walls are twenty miles round. Only half the area of the city is nownbsp;inhabited ; the deserted part is hilly, and bears a striking resemblancenbsp;to modem Rome, though the gigantic masses of ruin which distinguishnbsp;Rome are wanting in Nankin, as nothing in Chinese architecture is lastingnbsp;but the walls of their cities. The ancient palaces, observatories, temples,nbsp;and sepulchres, which adorned Nankin, before the emperor removednbsp;the court to Pekin, were destroyed by the Tartars.! The existing citynbsp;is still very large and populous, and contains the famous porcelain tower.

which is covered with tiles painted in various colours to represent porcelain, the whole being so artfully joined together as to appear like one entire piece. The tower is nine stories high, which are filled withnbsp;images. Nankin still continues the first manufacturing city in the empire. Its silks, papers, printing, and cottons, are much celebrated, andnbsp;the best Chinese, called by us Indian, ink, is manufactured in one ofnbsp;the cities of the Nankin province.* Nankin is also celebrated as thenbsp;principal seat of Chinese learning, and a greater supply of Chinese hooksnbsp;is here to be found than in any other part of the empire.f

To the south of Nankin the country is extremely picturesque ; its rich plains being varied with irregular hills and rocks, and vast plantations of the mulberry-tree. Near the Poyang lake, (which is a noblenbsp;piece of water, surrounded by mountains well cultivated and peopled),nbsp;is a large city, the seat of the porcelain manufacture, to which no foreigners are ever allowed to approach, lest they should learn the secretsnbsp;of their manufacture. The whole of this fine country has been traversed by Mr. Davis, late superintendent of trade in China, who accompanied Lord Amherst�s embassy to Pekin.

The climate becomes much warmer as you approach Canton. One of the peculiar boasts of the southern part of this province is its rice cultivation, said to be the finest in the empire. It supphes the whole of thenbsp;Pekin districts with this grain. Canton is situated at the vast entrancenbsp;of the Choo-kiang, � or Pearl River, which, for sixty miles below thenbsp;city, is studded with small but lofty islands ; and this river, for a considerable extent, maintains an average breadth of fifteen mdes. At thatnbsp;part of the mouth of the river, called by the English the Bocca Tigris,nbsp;it is only about two miles wide. Boats lie before the town hterally innbsp;thousands, and almost every one the permanent habitation of a family. The published accounts of the populousness of China are stronglynbsp;brought to mind, when one looks around on these boats, and on thenbsp;green fields and little islands which make up the scene, from the vastnbsp;harbour of Canton. Every level spot is covered with paddy (rice), andnbsp;the sides of every rocky island exhibit not only patches of cultivation,nbsp;but houses and even villages. The same impression is created by thenbsp;host of fishing-smacks, of which Mr. Malcom says he has counted two

� It may be useful to insert here the meaning of the principal geographical terms of the Chinese, as it will enable the reader better to understand a map of China.

hundred at one time, while standing on the deck of a ship in the river. It is calculated that 84,000 families live in boats in Canton, and thatnbsp;the whole population of the city and suburbs is about one milhon. Thenbsp;streets of Canton are generally not more than four or five feet wide,nbsp;and never exceed seven or eight. The houses rarely exceed one storynbsp;high ; and, excepting the better ones, are invisible, being built within anbsp;walled inclosure, and the door opening into a court or garden behind,nbsp;and not to the street. The narrowness of the streets (which are flaggednbsp;with smooth stones), of course excludes all wheel-carriages ; and the onlynbsp;vehicles are sedan-chairs, which are constantly gliding along, at a verynbsp;rapid rate ; those for ladies being closed with bhnds, but not so as tonbsp;prevent the occupant from looking through. As these chairs, home bynbsp;coolies (or porters) come rushing along, a perpetual shouting is kept upnbsp;to clear the way ; and unless you jump to the wall, or into a shop, younbsp;are rudely jostled ; for though the bearers are polite and kind, theirnbsp;head way and heavy burden render it impossible for them to makenbsp;sudden pauses. In some places mats are placed over head across thenbsp;street to exclude the sun ; and the end of each street has a strong gatenbsp;which is shut at night, chiefly to keep out thieves.*

Nearly in the centre of the outer Canton harbour is a large island called Lintin, noted as being the theatre of the opium smuggling. Atnbsp;the western side of the entrance to the Canton river, is the town ofnbsp;Macao, occupying the extreme south point of Heang Shan island, andnbsp;situated twenty miles from Lintin. Macao has all the appearance fromnbsp;the sea of a European town, with its churches, convents, and forts, builtnbsp;along the curve and topping the heights of a picturesque bay, but thenbsp;streets within are narrow, containing ill built houses and beggarly shops,nbsp;and the total absence of the appearance of business creates an air ofnbsp;desolation about it. Instead of its former population of 20,000 Portuguese and other foreigners, it has now only 4,300 inhabitants, a greatnbsp;number of whom are either black slaves or Chinese, which latter peoplenbsp;have their bazaar, temples, and even custom-house, and seem to be virtually rulers of the place. Trade is the only profession in which anbsp;Macao Portuguese will exert the few energies he may be gifted with,nbsp;and the possession of a few chests of opium constitute what they call anbsp;merchant. The Portuguese are not allowed to build any new houses,nbsp;nor even to repair the old ones without leave, which prohibition is easilynbsp;enforced, as all the workmen in the place are Chinese. A mandarinnbsp;annually visits the Portuguese forts and sees that no additions have beennbsp;made to them or their defences. The whole number of troops allowed

to the Portuguese is limited to four hundred hlack soldiers, commanded by eighteen Portuguese officers. Its once extensive commerce is nownbsp;almost annihilated. The churches are stiU numerous and are noble edifices, but some are in ruins, or used for barracks. While passing throughnbsp;Macao you are every moment reminded you are in a papal town ; thenbsp;bells ring often every day, processions with crucifixes and lighted candles go and come, and priests with black frocks and cocked hats arenbsp;seen in the streets. The Chinese have built a wall across the promontory on which Macao stands, effectually to assign to the foreigners theirnbsp;limits, and by stopping the supply of provisions they can always bringnbsp;the Portuguese to terms if difficulties occur. This barrier wall (whichnbsp;no European is allowed to pass) is said to have been erected in consequence of the practice in which the Romish priests indulged, of purchasing, or even stealing, Chinese children, to make them proselytes.nbsp;The Chinese with their usual skill and tact used to employ the Portuguese in former times against the enemies of the empire, and it wasnbsp;from their helping them to rid the coasts of pirates that they allowednbsp;them to settle at Macao for the purposes of trade, which place theynbsp;have occupied since the year 1537. In the year 1760 the Emperor ofnbsp;China prohibited aU foreigners from residing at Canton, after the shipping season was over, and all strangers had positive orders from the endnbsp;of one season to the beginning of the next, to transport themselves tonbsp;Macao. The residence of the British Factory here, during the summernbsp;months, was put an end to by events which occurred in 1834.*

The small island of Hong-kong was ceded � to the Queen of England and to her heirs for ever,� in the late treaty of peace with China. It isnbsp;situated at the eastern entrance of the Canton River, (while Macao isnbsp;thirty-five miles distant on the western side), and it is only one mile fromnbsp;the Chinese shore. Opposite Hong-Kong is a safe and extensive harbour for shipping, and it was here that our large fleet of merchantnbsp;vessels anchored during the suspension of trade at Canton at the commencement of the Chinese war in 1840. Before the English had possessed the island a twelve-nionth, a neat and handsome town arose onnbsp;the shore, which before was occupied only by Chinese fishermen.nbsp;Hong-Kong is a mountainous isle, and very picturesque ; its name is�anbsp;corruption of Hoong-Kiang, � the red torrent,� and is so called fromnbsp;the colour of the soil or rock over which the streams flow before theynbsp;fall over the cliff�, the highest point of which is between two or threenbsp;thousand feet.

* The above account of Macao has been chiefly taken from Howard Malcom's � Travels in China,quot; and Davis�s � Sketches in China,quot; both written in 18.39-40.

In the large maritime province of Fokien is grown the best tea, called by us in England BoTiea, and by the Chinese Ta-cha, or � large tea,�nbsp;because the leaves are allowed to remain on the tree till they havenbsp;arrived at their full maturity. Besides the province of Fokien, China isnbsp;divided into seventeen other provinces, each governed by a viceroy.nbsp;Opposite the eastern coast of China is the large island of Formosanbsp;200 miles in length, but without any good harbours. The coast of thenbsp;island facing China is included in the government of the Fokien province. A chain of mountains runs through the whole length of thenbsp;island, separating the Chinese colony from the aborigines on the easternnbsp;side. The Dutch had formerly some settlements on the south-westnbsp;coast of Formosa, but the multitudes of Chinese who took refuge herenbsp;at the time of the Tartar invasion, and conquest of China, drove themnbsp;away. Formosa supplies the empire with great quantities of rice.

The Loochoo Islands (to which some enterprizing and pious individuals in Great Britain are now attempting a mission) were visited by Mr. Gutz-laff in 1837. He did not find the people in exactly the condition as described by Captain Hall about fourteen years previous, who must havenbsp;viewed them in their holiday-dress. Both China and Japan claim supremacy over the Loochoo islands, but the former is satisfied with annbsp;annual embassy, while the latter levies a substantial tribute. Fifteennbsp;junks trade annually with Japan, and only two with Fokien in China.nbsp;Mr. Gutzlatf went on shore, and states that the poor people cultivatenbsp;potatoes, pidse, and grain for a meagre subsistence, that they were verynbsp;miserable in appearance, especially the women, but the fishermen werenbsp;hardy and adventurous. � At a fort at the entrance (says Mr. Gutzlaff)nbsp;the Loochooans had placed seven soldiers with clubs, in order to givenbsp;something like a military appearance to their harbour.� They seemnbsp;much oppressed and intimidated by the despotic government of Japan ;nbsp;for the people told Mr. Gutzlaff', they should lose their heads if theynbsp;were discovered by their rulers to trade with foreigners. Living,� saysnbsp;Mr. Davis, � as these poor Loochooans do, between the two most jealous nations in the world, and in the power of either, we cannot benbsp;surprized at the consternation they feel on every European visit.� *

The four ports of China which, at the treaty of peace in August 1842, were opened to English commerce, are Amoy, and Fouchoo-foo, nearlynbsp;opposite the island of Formosa ; Ningpo, about the 30th degree of latitude, and nearly opposite the Chusan islands ; and Shanghai a little farther north, not far from the southern extremity of the great China canal.nbsp;Ningpo was the former seat of European trade from whence the jealousy

of the present Tartar rulers of China banished it to Canton, as the most distant point from Pekin, their capital. Ningpo is in the midst ofnbsp;beautiful tea and silk districts, and is accounted by the Chinese as theirnbsp;earthly paradise.* Amoy is situated on an island, and is a place ofnbsp;considerable importance. It is nearly half way between Canton andnbsp;Chusan, and is the port from which the Chinese keep up theirnbsp;communication with Formosa. Fou-chou-foo is situated on the Rivernbsp;Min, which is navigable for large ships to about ten miles distantnbsp;from the city. It is the capital of the province of Fokien and thenbsp;great emporium of the black tea trade. By the restrictions whichnbsp;before the late war and treaty with China had confined our tea-tradenbsp;to the port of Canton, we were obliged to pay for the transport ofnbsp;black teas over an immense tract of country, in which lofty mountains were to be crossed and shallow rivers navigated with great difficulty,�whereas, they can now be brought in boats direct to our shipsnbsp;from the very farms where the teas are cultivated ; Shanghai fromnbsp;being in so northerly a latitude, is a much finer market for our woollennbsp;manufactures than Canton, as being so much nearer the places ofnbsp;consumption.

From so little intercourse having been permitted by the government of China with the civilized nations of Europe, its botany and geology are almost unknown, except that rice, the tea-plant, and thenbsp;mulberry are its chief objects of cultivation ; but numerous and verynbsp;beautiful trees and plants adorn this lovely land, with which we arenbsp;now every day becoming better acquainted. Flowering shrubs, and fruit-trees, are very abundant, as the orange, lemon, pomegranate, oleander,nbsp;camellia, mimosa, and numberless others. On the banks of the noblenbsp;Yang-tze-kiang, or Blue River, the magnificent camphor-tree, the horsechestnut, the croton-fir, the varnish-shrub, and bamboo (that giant ofnbsp;the grass tribe) grow together, with pines and cypresses, whose darknbsp;hues and uniform aspect beautifully contrast with the rich, brilliant, andnbsp;varied vegetation that surrounds them.f The sacred bean of India displays its superb scarlet flowers upon the waters of the rivers, the bamboo forms forests from lat. 29' to lat. 30�, and is cut down by the Chinese at various intervals or stages of its growth, according to the usenbsp;they wish to make of its stems. The poles by which they support thenbsp;sedan-chairs used in their great cities, are four or five inches in diameter.nbsp;Like every other grass, the bamboo dies as soon as it has flowered.

In the southern provinces there is a combination of the trees of India and Asia Minor; among which we may mention palms, bananas, guavas, amp;c., with myrtles,nbsp;peaches, apricots, and vines.

The article of commerce we call � rice-paper,' and on which the Chinese execute such soft and rich paintings of flowers and birds, is the innernbsp;coat of the bark of a tree, not yet exactly known to Europeans, butnbsp;supposed to be of the malvacea tribe of plants. Sugar-cane growsnbsp;every where in the southern provinces of China, but the Chinese arenbsp;generally too poor to afford mills for the purpose of manufacturing it.nbsp;It is not found higher than latitude 29 or 30 degrees.

Of birds, there are in China several magnificent species of pheasant, and among them the argus-eyed pheasant has the most splendid plumage.nbsp;The insects of China are numerous and beautiful. The Chinese lanternfly emits a strong phosphoric light from its trunk-like snout. The bombyx atlas is one of the largest moths in the world, measuring full eightnbsp;inches from one tip of the wing to the other. The white-wax insect isnbsp;a remarkable little fly, the larva of which is furnished with very curiousnbsp;feathery appendages, which are covered all over with a powdery substance which the insect imparts to the stems of the plants on whichnbsp;they are found in great numbers, this powder when collected from thenbsp;plants, and mixed with hot vegetable oil forms a substance as hard asnbsp;bees-wax, and is made into candles by the Chinese. The silk-worm isnbsp;a native of China, and there are other species than that which has beennbsp;introduced into Europe, which produce silk of nearly equal value. Thenbsp;principal domestic animals of China, are the pig, the ox, and the zebu,nbsp;a small animal of the ox kind. The Chinese keep an immense numbernbsp;of domesticated ducks, and have a particular kind of boat on theirnbsp;rivers for rearing them, with a broad platform projecting over thenbsp;water. Of all possible varieties of the horse, the Chinese is the mostnbsp;wretched, and very small and weak,* and the people are so numerous,nbsp;that manual labour in China in a great measure supersedes the use ofnbsp;domestic animals.

Coal is mentioned by Davis as being found in the northern province!? in considerable quantities. Rubies, topaz, lapis lazuli, jasper, agate,nbsp;marble, porphyry, and granite are enumerated among the precious andnbsp;ornamental minerals of China. A yellow copper ore, found in Yunnan,nbsp;is used as coin throughout the empire ; and no gold or silver is coined,nbsp;though the former is obtained from the sand of rivers in the province!?nbsp;near Tliibet, and native silver ore in great abundance, but no mines ofnbsp;importance are known of. Mines of mercury abound in Yunnan, whichnbsp;is a mountainous province to the south-west, very rich in minerals.

With regard to climate, China possesses a temperature which will be considered very low, in comparison with that of the corresponding

western countries in the same latitude that are washed by the Atlantic Ocean. The Len-shan, or Meilin mountains, which run from west tonbsp;east for upwards of a thousand miles, dividing the provinces of Yunnan,nbsp;Koang-si, Canton, and Fokien from the rest of the empire, mark thenbsp;termination of the equatorial and the commencement of the transitionnbsp;zone. The plants and flowers of hot climates are not found beyond thenbsp;twenty-seventh degree of latitude. The northern sides of the Meilinnbsp;hills are covered with forests of the oak, horn-beam, and poplar, andnbsp;are subject to severe winters, during which the valleys are covered withnbsp;snow.* In the more northerly provinces of China, the winters ai'e cold ;nbsp;and from the Hoang-Ho and the Yellow Sea to the great wall, the riversnbsp;are frozen from the month of November to March ; but the climate ofnbsp;the southern provinces, and especially at Canton, is extremely hot andnbsp;oppressive.

No country has experienced fewer revolutions than China, or has sustained so little change from those to which at times she has been subjected. The brief notices of the Roman Historians in the first centuries of the Christian era, represent the Chinese precisely as they

now are, quiet, peaceable, and industrious, and to have had then as they have now, silk and tea for their staple productions. The Chinesenbsp;possess a much more complete and connected series of historical annals,nbsp;than any other Asiatic nation. It is true, a great part of their earlynbsp;history is fabulous, as it ascends to a period of 49,000 years. Aboutnbsp;the year 500, b.c., China was divided among a number of petty princes,nbsp;who acknowledged in the Emperor little more than a feudal supremacy :nbsp;about this time arose the famous philosopher, Kong-foo-tze, (or as thenbsp;Jesuits have latinized it, Confucius.) He established thftse principles ofnbsp;laws, manners and government, which have since been predominant innbsp;China ; after him a series of struggles prevailed, till at length a complete despotism was established, tempered by some institutions whichnbsp;were calculated to give it a mild and protecting character. Thus situated,nbsp;the nation lost its military energy, and became an easy prey to thosenbsp;barbarous neighbours, who roam over the high table lands of centralnbsp;Asia. But China has in some measure, civilized her invaders, andnbsp;the manners and institutions of the Empire, have survived the shocksnbsp;of successive Tartar conquests, and the present dynasty though ofnbsp;Mandchoo origin, appears to have governed mildly, and according to itsnbsp;ancient laws and principles of government.*

It was at the beginning of the seventeenth century, that the Portuguese first found their way into China ; their popish emissaries penetrated into the Empire, and communicated some knowledge both of religion and the sciences of Europe ; but their religion was a corruptednbsp;one, and their�work was brought to nought.f

The history of China presents a series of wars and commotions with the various Tartar tribes, that surround the Empire, till the year 1662,nbsp;when the founder of the present Tartar dynasty ascended the throne.nbsp;Some of his successors attempted to introduce arts and sciences, and tonbsp;destroy that slavish adherence to ancient custom, which is the peculiarnbsp;feature of the Chinese character, but they did not succeed; for what thenbsp;people were before, and were then, that they stiU remain. Under thenbsp;direction of Kang-he, one of their Emperors, the whole country wasnbsp;surveyed by the Jesuits, and he even so far triumphed over nationalnbsp;prejudices, as to adorn his palace with European arts. His successor

* Mongul and Mandchoo Tartars occupy, as iridepcbdcnt people, the whole country bordering on the south of Asiatic Russia, though very thinly scattered, as the country isnbsp;intersected with deserts. They acknowledge the supremacy of China, and considernbsp;themselves under its protection, having, as it were, with it a family connection, a Tartarnbsp;ruler (or khan) being its emperor. Many of the Tartar tribes in the south-west of thenbsp;Chinese empire are Mahometans ; the rest are Pagans, of the Buddhist superstition.nbsp;See � Missionary Register� for 18'22, p. 43.

seeing the disposition of the Jesuits to intrigue, banished them to Canton. The Chinese saw, that while the Jesuits professed to serve thenbsp;one true God, they w�re seeking with eagerness after Mammon, hence,nbsp;they gave all Missionaries the same character, and their rulers havenbsp;long denied them a free intercourse with the people.

Between 1765 and 1795, the Dutch, English, and Portuguese nations all sent embassies for permission to trade with China, and were tolerablynbsp;well received. About this time the Chinese settled the precise boundarynbsp;line of their empire with Russia, beyond which the Russians have notnbsp;been allowed to advance, but only to trade with China, at one singlenbsp;point on the boundary line, just below the Lake Baikal. The presentnbsp;Emperor of China, Taou-Kwang (or � Reason�s Glory�) ascended thenbsp;throne in 1821. He leads a life of inglorious ease in the city of Pekin,nbsp;while Viceroys and Mandarins bear rule, and the tide of corruptionnbsp;remains unstemmed.* When he arrayed his forces against the Englishnbsp;in the late war, he was on all occasions defeated, and was obliged tonbsp;purchase peace with a large sum of money, and to surrender to Greatnbsp;Britain a portion of his territory, which though small, furnishes hernbsp;�with a safe and commodious anchorage for her shipping. England andnbsp;China are now more closely united than they have ever yet been in thenbsp;annals of history ; and the humanity and upright deahng of the Englishnbsp;at the close of the war, has begotten a high respect for their foes in thenbsp;minds of the Chinese ; even the haughtiness of the court is subduednbsp;by it, and a disposition for a close and friendly alliance is clearlynbsp;exhibited.

The Emperor of China rules despotically over nearly one third of the whole human race, and arrogates to himself the most extravagant andnbsp;presumptuous titles, by which he thinks to inspire his subjects with thenbsp;greater awe and obedience,�such as, � Interpreter of the decrees ofnbsp;Heaven,� � Imperial Supreme,� � Most High,� � Lord of ten thousand Islands,� amp;c. In China, all worship the creature in the personnbsp;of their Emperor. Thus for instance, no person is allowed to pass thenbsp;gates of the imperial palace either on horseback, or in any vehicle, andnbsp;they pay the same homage and respect to the vacant throne itself, asnbsp;when the Emperor is occupying it. The Emperor alone is High Priestnbsp;of the State Religion, and sacrifices in person at the Governmentnbsp;temples, accompanied by his representatives. The sacrificial duties ofnbsp;the State Religion, are far more numerous and burdensome than anynbsp;others laid upon him.f On the occasion of the Emperor�s annual pilgrimage to the tombs of his ancestors, he is attend by all his grandees

in excessive pomp and splendour. The Empress of China is considered by the Chinese to represent the Earth, while the Emperor personifiesnbsp;Heaven : in particular she receives the homage due to the god of thenbsp;silk-worm, and under her inspection silk stulFs are woven by the ladiesnbsp;of the Harem, and annually brought by her as ofierings to the gods.nbsp;The manner in which the Empress of China is chosen by the Sovereignnbsp;illustrates, and receives illustration from the record of Persian mannersnbsp;in the book of Esther. Before the conquest of China by the Mandchoonbsp;Tartars, there were five degrees of nobility, to which were added fournbsp;more. These Mongol Chiefs are called � Khans,� but on the Turcomansnbsp;the Emperor confers the native title of � Beg.� The Chinese valuenbsp;highly their ancient and hereditary titles of nobility, and even carrynbsp;this predilection for honours to such an extremely absurd length, as tonbsp;suppose they can buy and transmit rank and honours to their relativesnbsp;after their death. The wealthy and deluded Chinese frequently purchasenbsp;of the Emperor the various ranks he pretends to have at his disposal, andnbsp;as soon as the patent is put into their hands, they rest satisfied that theirnbsp;ancestors are ennobled. This is one of the strangest delusions unfoldednbsp;in the pages of history, though possibly it may be encouraged by thenbsp;state, in order to obtain money ;�may it not be looked upon as anbsp;counterpart to that delusion which the Romish church palms upon Christendom concerning souls in purgatory. The one asks money for thenbsp;honour of the dead, the other for their happiness ! *

We will now give our readers a brief sketch of the manner in which the government of this vast empire is carried on. The imperial cabinetnbsp;of China consists of four principal members, who are alternately Mandchoo Tartars and Chinese. These are generally men grown grey in thenbsp;service of their country : their chief employment is to echo the sentiments of their sovereign, upon whom they are continually in attendance.nbsp;There are ten other members in the cabinet, six of whom are Tartars,nbsp;and four Chinese, who are viceroys or governors of provinces, and residents in the colonies. The next in rank to these are the superintendentsnbsp;of the treasury, then the keepers of the records, and accountant-secretaries and heralds, amounting in all to more than five hundred persons,nbsp;to each of whom is assigned his own particular sphere of business, so thatnbsp;no delay may be occasioned. Frequent changes occur in the imperialnbsp;cabinet, as might be expected under an absolute monarchy ; and thenbsp;members are often suddenly degraded by the sole will of the emperor,nbsp;and are made to serve as private soldiers, standing sentinel at the hallnbsp;of the very palace where they have, the hour before, been enjoying thenbsp;highest rank and favour.

Since the reigns of the last two emperors, a privy council has been elected, who are constituted a very powerful board, and their decrees,nbsp;framed under the eye of the emperor, are unalterable. Their proceedings are involved in mystery, and they are called, � Ministers of thenbsp;Military Ensign,� being chiefly Chinese generals. Besides the membersnbsp;of government already named, there are the board of civil appointments,nbsp;the board of revenue, the board of rites, the military board, the boardnbsp;of punishments, the board of public works, the censorate (whose members are censors in name, but flatterers in reality, and often the enslavers of the people) ; the court of requests, whose business it is to seenbsp;to the accurate wording and writing of all public papers and decrees ;nbsp;lastly are the office for foreign affairs, and the Han-lin, or national college, whose members recite orations, epigrams, eulogies, and poems, fornbsp;the amusement of the emperor and his guests. Four of this body arenbsp;always in attendance on the person of the emperor, to record his wordsnbsp;and actions, something like the � recorders � of whom we read in thenbsp;sacred writings.

The Chinese army is more to be compared to a skeleton than to a living body. Nearly the whole of the cavalry exists only upon paper,nbsp;and what does exist is nearly useless The Chinese soldier is not trainednbsp;to fight for his country, but as a police-runner and an imperial hunter.nbsp;During the greater part of the year, he lives as a husbandman, or isnbsp;engaged in trade, and hence is totally unskilled in the art of war. Evennbsp;small bands of robbers and pirates have proved too strong for the forcenbsp;of the whole empire. Their chief arms are the bow and arrow, andnbsp;some have spears. Their matchlocks are wretched, and generally sonbsp;rusty as to be unfit for use ; the same may be said of the few rusty ironnbsp;swords they possess, which are never drawn out of the scabbard. Theirnbsp;dress is a long petticoat, and over that a large-sleeved jacket descendingnbsp;below their waists. This, and the thick-soled shoe of the Chinese, givenbsp;them a very inactive and unmilitary appearance, and they are usuallynbsp;drawn up in one single line, at long intervals, so as to make the greatestnbsp;show possible,*

Their navy is represented as not more effective than their army. Their boats are all built for conveying merchandize, or for dwellings fornbsp;the peasant or the mandarin. The number of grain-junks on the Pekinnbsp;river Mr. Davis describes as immense, and are calcidated to make anbsp;deep impression of the magnitude of the empire and its edible resources.

One of the most remarkable features of China is its population, which is by far the greatest united under one social and pohtical system in any

part of the world. It is a subject which has afforded scope for doubt and controversy. A statement has been made in China, professing tonbsp;be official, which gives the number of inhabitants at 360,000,000, andnbsp;this has gained general credit ; but Dr. Morrison�s enumeration, asnbsp;given him by the present emperor, only amounts to 146,000,000. Thisnbsp;is generally considered as too low an estimate, and Murray thinks thatnbsp;the actual number may he somewhere between two and three hundrednbsp;millions. The central and eastern parts are the most populous.*

The trade of China is almost wholly internal. China supplies within itself nearly all the commodities which minister either to the wants ornbsp;the pleasure of her people. There is no monied interest in China, nonbsp;system of credit between the merchants of distant provinces, and nonbsp;circulating medium except a copper coin of the value of a third of anbsp;farthing. The internal commerce is thus confined to the operation ofnbsp;bartering the various productions of its different provinces. Of thenbsp;foreign commerce of China, the chief part is in the hands of the English. Prior to 1833, it was exclusively carried on through the mediumnbsp;of the East India Company ; but on the renewal of their charter at thatnbsp;period, they engaged not only to throw the trade open to the Britishnbsp;public, but to renounce it themselves, as soon as their stock could be soldnbsp;off. In consequence of this, private merchants engaged in it with theirnbsp;usual activity. The importation of tea is the principal branch of trade,nbsp;and, since the alteration of the East India Company�s charter, it has increased from an average of thirty-one millions of pounds per annum, tonbsp;one of forty-nine millions. The Hong merchants are wholesale Chinesenbsp;dealers, empowered by their government to carry on trade with foreigners. The foreign factories, thirteen in number, of which thenbsp;English and American are by far the largest, had, before the opening ofnbsp;the five ports, only been allowed by the Chinese to occupy one smallnbsp;street or quay in the suburbs of Canton.f The Portuguese, French,nbsp;Swedes, and Danes, all carry on a very trifling commerce with China,nbsp;but each nation is only allowed by law to enter at one port or station.nbsp;The Dutch rank next to the English in the amount of trade carried onnbsp;with Canton. The trade between India and China is chiefly carried onnbsp;with Bombay, and that to a considerable extent in cotton and the finenbsp;opium of Malwa.J

* See � Missionary Register� for 1816, p. 293. According to the statement of Mr. Medhurst, 300,000,000 is the population of the empire, estimated by their own revenuenbsp;officers.

Mr. Oliphant, one of the factory merchants, is mentioned by Dr. Morrison in 1832 as � a devoted servant of Christ and friend of China, and opening his factory for thenbsp;reception of missionaries.�

In the year 1839, the Chinese government demanded that all ships laden with opium should be sent away from Canton, under penalty ofnbsp;hostile measures. They next peremptorily required that all the opiumnbsp;they contained should be delivered up to them, which was accordinglynbsp;done. Still the Chinese were not satisfied, and in many ways insultednbsp;the honour of Britain ; hostilities soon after commenced, and the Chinese war followed, the events of which are still fresh in the memory ofnbsp;most of our readers.* A Treaty was signed before Nankin in Augustnbsp;1842, by which the Emperor agreed that five principal ports of China,nbsp;�the names of which we have already enumerated,�were to be openednbsp;for commerce. Consuls are to reside at these ports, and the wives ofnbsp;foreigners to be allowed to live with their husbands, a privilege notnbsp;heretofore allowed at Canton.

The Chinese�descended from the Mongolians�still retain the leading characteristic features of that tribe of mankind ; their complexion is that of a sickly white or pale yellow. Their hair is universally black,nbsp;thick, and strong, but the men always shave their heads, except a smallnbsp;part at the back, where they leave the hair very long and plait it into a

* However we might deplore the causes that gave rise to this war, yet in its results, both politically and religiously, the hand of a controling Providence may be recognised.

tail. When they are mourning for a relative they allow their hair to grow and cut off the long tail. The women fasten their hair up into anbsp;knot at the top of the head, and often wear artificial flowers as an ornament. The Chinese have broad flat triangular faces, small eyes, archednbsp;eyebrows, (which are often painted) and the upper lip extending a littlenbsp;beyond the lower. Mr. Barrow observes, that the air of good humournbsp;which is visible in the countenance of the male Chinese, is exchanged innbsp;that of the females for one of fretfulness and discontent, which is owingnbsp;perhaps to the hard and tyrannical treatment they generally receive.

Quietude, industry, order, and regularity�qualities which a despotic government seeks always to foster�seem to be conspicuous in the Chinese ;* on the other hand they are sly, deceitful, and over-reaching,nbsp;and pay very little regard to truth. In speaking of the character ofnbsp;the Chinese, a modern writer observes�� The peasantry, in their simplenbsp;manners, and civil treatment of strangers, afford a pleasing contrast to thenbsp;designing cunning of the salesman of Canton, or the brutal importunitynbsp;of the courtiers of Pekin.� t And yet other writers speak of the rudenbsp;behaviour and opprobrious epithets the Chinese assail foreigners with,nbsp;calling them � Red-haired Devils,� amp;c. Education (as far as learningnbsp;to read and write goes) is fostered and inculcated among the lowernbsp;classes by the Government, at least so far as is just essential to businessnbsp;or the reading the penal laws, which are printed and circulated amongnbsp;the people. But the mode of education in China is entirely powerlessnbsp;in producing any right moral conduct. Mr. Gutzlaff says of the Chinese�� They may be considered an agricultural people, whose densitynbsp;of population exceeds the means of their subsistence, incessant toil isnbsp;therefore necessary in order to support life ; and in supplying even thenbsp;most urgent bodily wants, every thought is absorbed, so that they havenbsp;neither time nor inclination to seek for mental improvement. Theirnbsp;clothing, dwellings, and whole mode of life amply bespeak the povertynbsp;and necessity by which the great bulk of the nation are controuled.nbsp;The middle classes indulge a good deal in sloth and idleness ; but ifnbsp;they do, however, engage in literary pursuits, the same industry whichnbsp;animates the peasant is visible in the pursuit of their studies : they actually toil to obtain knowledge, and carefully store up their acquisitions.�nbsp;A very marked feature in the character of the Chinese is their love ofnbsp;money ; they even think they may indulge in this ruling passion afternbsp;death : it seems to us scarcely credible, but it is a well-attested fact,nbsp;that they annually bum vast quantities of paper covered over with thinnbsp;plates of gold and silver, under the impression that its ashes will take the

value of dollars in the next world, which they shall find when they arrive there ! The inordinate national pride of the people of Chinanbsp;seems to proceed from self-love and ignorance, and this disposition hasnbsp;been encouraged and promoted by the Government, who considerednbsp;that its interest was concerned in increasing a dislike towards foreignnbsp;nations, and it has been customary with the Emperor to call any unionnbsp;with Europeans, � a traiterons intercourse.� There is a great spirit ofnbsp;clanship among the lower classes, and their love for their own familiesnbsp;and relations is very great. They are also extremely partial to thenbsp;place of their birth.

Parents are shown great honour and respect in China ; but the state of females is almost as degraded and neglected as in India. Religion isnbsp;denied them ; and they are not allowed a voice in the domestic concernsnbsp;of the family. Women of the lower classes are complete slaves, andnbsp;inured to drudgery of every kind. The higher ranks of females arenbsp;scarcely more educated than the poor, and the chief thing impressed uponnbsp;their minds is implicit obedience. Bishop Heber thus writes�� Innbsp;India, any thing is thought good enough for the weaker sex ; and thenbsp;roughest words, the poorest garments, the scantiest alms, the most degrading labour, and the hardest blows are their portion. Yet, comparednbsp;with the Malayan tribes, the Hindoos are a gentle people ; while thenbsp;Chinese, amidst all their seeming polish, are perhaps the most barbarousnbsp;of any people in their notions regarding women : if they do not, like thenbsp;Turks, wholly deny them the possession of souls, it is only a few of thenbsp;most virtuous whom they admit to the rewards of their immortality.nbsp;Female infanticide still prevails in China, a horrid practice, which couldnbsp;not be tolerate?, but for the popular contempt in which women are held.�nbsp;The women of the humbler classes learn weaving, sewing, embroidery,nbsp;and the whole drudgery of household and field work, besides rowing andnbsp;steering on the rivers. Females of all ranks are compelled to marry thosenbsp;whom their parents select for them, and their choice is never consulted ;nbsp;hence the married life is frequently an unhappy one, and suicides amongnbsp;married females often occur, especially in the higher ranks of society.

Although the Chinese are mild, docile, and respectful, yet they are insincere, jealous, and distrustful. No disgrace whatever is attached tonbsp;lying and deceit, and it is even considered praiseworthy when practisednbsp;towards foreigners. The action of every magistrate or person in anynbsp;official capacity is closely and minutely watched, and his merits or demerits represented to his superior ; this system, while it upholds thenbsp;throne, and prevents any change taking place in the established ordernbsp;of things, yet works for evil, as it produces constant deceit and prevarication. Every parent is by law liable to punishment for the crimes of

his children, whatever age they may be, and he is also entitled to rewards for their merits ; and hence, influenced by hope and fear, the people are anxious to promote education, and every town or village hasnbsp;its public place for teaching to read, while wealthy families have privatenbsp;tutors for their children.* The Chinese think themselves the most civilized and enlightened nation upon the face of the earth, but comparednbsp;with the number of courts established for the maintenance of religiousnbsp;rites and ceremonies, their institutions for learning sink into insignificance. There are however (such as they are) three courts of learning innbsp;China : The � National Institute,� established for the education ofnbsp;Mandchoo Tartars, nobles, and officers ; the � Astronomical Board,� tonbsp;which the Jesuits were admitted (before they were banished the empire),nbsp;and whose chief employment is to make a yearly calendar for the emperor, and foretel or pretend to foretel, future events ; and the � Medicalnbsp;Board.� All these institutions are miserably deficient in truth andnbsp;knowledge. Some few great and clever men have appeared in China,nbsp;but the minds of the great mass of the people are weakened and debased by superstition and ignorance.

The Chinese language is written in symbolic characters, bearing some resemblance to the objects and ideas they are intended to express, andnbsp;are perfectly uniform throughout the whole Chinese empire. Thusnbsp;every separate thing or idea has a different character, instead of a smallnbsp;number of characters or letters being repeated over and over again, asnbsp;in the formation of our language ; so that, at first sight, it wouldnbsp;appear that the Chinese alphabet was composed of hundreds and thousands of characters ; but experience has shown us that there is a smallernbsp;number of original characters than was at first supposed, which arenbsp;altered in position and combination, so as to express all the words theynbsp;wish.f There are, however, 214 of these primitive characters, or roots,nbsp;which, as Mr. Davis says, may be called the alphabet of the Chinesenbsp;language. There are 40,000 difi�erent characters in Dr. Morrison�snbsp;Chinese Dictionary, and 3,000 are used in the Chinese New Testament,nbsp;each character expressing a different idea. Although the written andnbsp;printed language of China, as regards its character or symbol, is everywhere precisely the same throughout the empire, yet each provincenbsp;almost has its own peculiar spoken dialect ; so that though a Chinese may,nbsp;when he sees a book, be able to read off the words, yet this does notnbsp;prove that he understands one word of what he reads ; and often the

Mr. Malcom tells us that the Roman Catholic missionaries employed the English alphabet and � Roman� character to express the Chinese, Japanese, Siamese, and Burman languages.

spoken and the written language differ materially. Mr. Malcom (a missionary who travelled in China expressly to learn their habits andnbsp;manners) says, he thinks not more than one out of fifty can understandnbsp;the plainest book, and scarcely any of these persons are females, exceptnbsp;among the very highest classes.* Still they have acquired a habit ofnbsp;learning to read, and that is something gained in forming the mind, andnbsp;preparing it to receive further instruction. Mr. Medhurst, a zealousnbsp;missionary, has prepared a dictionary in the Fokien dialect ; but therenbsp;are not a sufficient number of characters to translate the scriptures intonbsp;any other Chinese vocal dialect, and many words in common use are notnbsp;expressed at all by any symbol, although the language has been in usenbsp;among a very large proportion of the human race for four thousand years.

A greater proportion of the community is devoted to literary pursuits in China, than in any other heathen country in the world. The literature of China consists of their sacred books, of moral and politicalnbsp;essays, of works on their criminal law, of history, biography, astronomy,nbsp;geography, medicine, poetry, dramatic writings, and works of fiction ;nbsp;in these last there is a good deal of wit and humour. But to show hownbsp;ignorant they are with regard to some of the sciences on which theynbsp;pretend to write, we will just give the reader a brief sketch of a Chinesenbsp;map of the world, extracted from Mr. Malcom�s account of one he sawnbsp;in 1839 :�� It was two feet wide by three and a-half feet high, andnbsp;was almost covered with China ! In the left hand comer, at the top,nbsp;is a sea, three inches square, in which are delineated, as small islands,nbsp;Europe, England, France, Holland, Portugal, and Africa. Holland isnbsp;as large as all the rest put together, and Africa is not so big as the endnbsp;of one�s little finger ! The northern frontier is Russia, very large. Thenbsp;left corner, at the bottom, is occupied by a sea, in which the Malaynbsp;peninsula is pretty well defined. (Possibly this part may have been donenbsp;by the Jesuits.) Along the bottom are Camboja and Cochin China,nbsp;represented as moderate-sized islands, and on the right is Formosa,nbsp;larger than all the rest of the islands together. Various other countriesnbsp;are introduced as small islands. The surrounding ocean is represented in huge waves, with smooth passages or highways branchingnbsp;off to the difl'erent countries (or islands, as they represent them). Theynbsp;suppose that ships keeping along these highways, go safely ; but if theynbsp;lose the track they get among the awful billows, and are lost ! �

Though the Chinese possess a bulky literature, yet there is very little that is practical or useful amongst it ; the mass of thought contained innbsp;their numerous volumes, presents a very low picture of human intellect.nbsp;Notwithstanding it appears that, by means of the Arabs, the nations of

* See Malcom�s � Travels in China and Hindustan.'� Edinburgh edition, p. .57.

Europe obtained several very useful arts from China, such as the composition of gunpowder, the use of the magnetic compass, and the art of printing. The mode of Chinese printing is by means of wooden blocks,nbsp;and was in use among them as early as the tenth century. Tlie chief usenbsp;they make of gunpowder is in fire-works, in which they greatly excel.

The manufactures in which the Chinese most excel, are those of silks and porcelain ; the former are woven in rude and simple hand-looms,nbsp;like those used by the ancients�for of machinery they know nothing.nbsp;Their artificial flowers, and various mats made of the split bamboo, arenbsp;very beautiful and curious. Ivory and sandal-wood are wrought andnbsp;carved by them with the greatest elegance ; and their manufacture ofnbsp;cut-glass nearly equals that of Europe. In making highly-polishednbsp;convex mirrors of brass they are also famous. In porcelain and lacquered work they excel, though in the former art they are now outstripped by Europeans, and in the latter by the people of Japan.*nbsp;Mr. Gutzlaff observes, in the working of iron and steel the Chinesenbsp;have never been celebrated, and their tools in common use are verynbsp;clumsy. It would be difficult to find a blacksmith in China that couldnbsp;make an anchor or any large piece of machinery ; but what they wantnbsp;in skill, is made up for by perseverance and economy of labour.

The Chinese are essentially an agricultural people ; but though diligent and laborious, the science of good husbandry is unknown among them,nbsp;and like the Hindoos, they make use of very rude implements. Tlieirnbsp;extremely simple plough and harrow are drawn by their small oxen.nbsp;Rice is the principal grain cultivated, though wheat and millet are grownnbsp;in the northern provinces. Several provinces in China are appropriatednbsp;to the cultivation of the mulberry-tree, which is grown exclusively fornbsp;the purpose of feeding the silk-worm. But the most important objectnbsp;of cultivation in China is the tea-plant. It is a small evergreen shrub,nbsp;something like the myrtle in appearance, and is capable of enduringnbsp;great variations of climate. The cultivation of the tea-plant affords tonbsp;the Chinese peasantry a profitable employment, while to the government it is a chief source of revenue. The tea is gathered four timesnbsp;a-year, with the greatest nicety and care ; the fineness and dearness ofnbsp;the tea is determined by the tenderness and smallness of the leaf. Innbsp;China all classes freely partake of tea as a beverage ; and the coarsernbsp;leaves are made up into hard cakes, and dried, to be used by the Tartarnbsp;tribes and the poorest Chinese.

* They possess the art of softening horn, by applying a high degree of moist heat, and extending it into thin layers, either flat or globular. The lanterns constructed of thisnbsp;substance are about as transparent as ground glass, and ornamented with silk hangings,nbsp;which give them a handsome effect See � China and the Chinese.�

The Chinese houses are tent-like edifices, supported in a weak and flimsy manner by thin wooden columns, roofed with glazed earthen tilesnbsp;on the outside, and within with painted deal rafters ; a few mother-of-pearl shells filling up the interstices between. They are low, andnbsp;never of more than one story high ; those of the better class are highlynbsp;ornamented with carving and paint, but the cottages of the very poornbsp;are of mud, though neat and made with some taste. Dr. Morrisonnbsp;says (writing from Macao), � Over almost every Chinese door is inscribed, � The Ruler of Heaven sends down happiness ; � or, � The fivenbsp;blessednesses enter here.�� All Chinese edifices are built after one fashion ;nbsp;temples, pagodas, palaces, mansions, cottages, summer-houses, and gateways�all display the same construction ; and the laws forbid the architect departing from the established rules of building,* But that thenbsp;Chinese are capable of producing more solid architecture is shown bynbsp;the great national wall that divides the northern part of China fromnbsp;Tartary, with its numerous watch-towers, and by their gateways andnbsp;detached towers, in various parts of the empire, built of sohd brick,nbsp;upon a firm stone foundation.

The usual mode of travelling in China is by barges and boats, or in sedan-chairs. The mandarins (or nobles) are attended bv numerousnbsp;servants, carrying gongs and umbrellas, and boards with the names andnbsp;titles of their masters painted on them.

The dress of the genteel classes is not transcended in beauty, costliness, or delicacy, by that of any nation in the world. The men wear a long loose gown of silk or linen, with large hanging sleeves, and crossingnbsp;over in front, with tight collar round the neck, which, on occasions ofnbsp;full-dress, is gathered round the waist with a silk girdle fastened by anbsp;clasp. Their cap is of light-woven bamboo, ornamented with a largenbsp;silk tassel, which hangs completely over it. Wove stockings of silk ornbsp;cotton, and shoes made of cloth, satin, or velvet, highly embroidered,nbsp;with extremely thick and high soles, completes their outer dress. Innbsp;winter they exchange the light bamboo cap for one of cloth or felt,nbsp;turned up round the edge with fur ; and over their long silken robenbsp;they put a large-sleeved spencer, made of embroidered silk or broadcloth, reaching to the hips, and lined with skins. The dress of thenbsp;peasantry is a pair of very large blue nankeen cotton trowsers, with a

* The facility and cheapness with which the Chinese erect large houses of mats, made entirely of the bamboo, is remarkable. The admirable manner in which the bamboo combines lightness and strength renders it a most valuable resource to this ingenious and industrious people. Their temporary theatres, their public halls, their warehouses fornbsp;storing goods, are all erected of these mats at a few hours� notice, and serve equally wellnbsp;to exclude the heat and the rain. Not a nail is used in their construction, nor even anbsp;cord, but thin strips of bamboo bind every part together in a neat and compact manner.

loose cotton frock with large sleeves, buttoned round the throat, which, in summer, or at their work, is frequently dispensed with. Neither mennbsp;nor women of the lower classes wear shoes or stockings. The costumenbsp;of Chinese ladies is very modest and becoming, and made as splendid asnbsp;possible with the richest silk or gold embroidery. It consists of a loosenbsp;robe of silk, in shape very much like that worn by men, fastened closenbsp;round the throat with a small collar, and very large loose hangingnbsp;sleeves. The barbarous custom of distorting the foot of high-classnbsp;.females in China, is too well known almost to require any comment. Itnbsp;is effected during the first month or two of their existence, and the operation is of so painful a nature, that the Christian female shudders at thenbsp;thought. The object is to prevent the foot ever attaining a largernbsp;growth ; it prevents the Chinese ladies from walking, except in a mostnbsp;awkward and tottering manner, and no doubt was first adopted to preclude the possibility of their gadding about.*

The Chinese are much addicted to the use of opium. Mr. Lay, the agent for the British and Foreign Bible Society in China, observes, thatnbsp;too much leisure, more money than is required for the absolute necessaries of life, a guilty conscience, an unquiet mind, and bad company,nbsp;are the promoters, if not the causes, of this destructive habit. Anbsp;dreadful picture is drawn by missionaries of the effect of this drug onnbsp;the Chinese. It is the duty of the British to cease from cultivating innbsp;India, and from introducing into China, any more opium than is required as a medicine ; and it is the duty of the Chinese to desist fromnbsp;smuggling it into their country.f The lower orders are very prone tonbsp;gambling, especially among the sea-faring poor.

The great staff of life in China is rice, and the people are also extremely fond of pork ; and evei-y Chinaman who can afford it keeps pigs : but the very poor will eat almost anything, and their food is oftennbsp;of a very coarse and even disgusting nature to the ideas of a European.nbsp;They live a great deal on fish, both fresh, dried, and salted ; and cultivate every little available spot of ground with vegetables of variousnbsp;kinds. The flesh of the bullock, sheep, deer, dog, cat, and even horse,nbsp;are all eaten in China ; but compared with pigs, these animals are a verynbsp;scarce article of food.

Kiteflying, farces, puppet-shows, tumbling, rope-dancing, amp;c., form the most favourite amusements, alike of the peasant and the courtier.nbsp;They have been called quot; a nation of grown-up children,� and theirnbsp;fondness for puerile amusements seems to justify the remark. It isnbsp;rather amusing to observe how completely the reverse of ours, some

of the Chinese customs are ; for instance, they mount a horse on the right side of the animal, instead of the left ; old men play battledorenbsp;and fly kites, while little boys look gravely on ; and their books arenbsp;read from the top to the bottom of the page, instead of from sidenbsp;to side.

We may gather, from the works of their own philosopher and lawgiver Confucius, that the Chinese, at one time, had some tolerably correct ideas of an Almighty Supreme Being ; for he is described by this writer as independent of man, and holy, and as acquainted with thenbsp;secrets of men�s hearts. Like other heathen nations, they have arrivednbsp;at their present state of gross idolatry by slow degrees. Their firstnbsp;step in the downward path was forsaking the worship of � Tien,� ornbsp;the Deity, and paying homage to the sun, moon, and stars ; they nextnbsp;worshipped inferior spirits, whom they supposed to preside over cities,nbsp;rivers, mountains, provinces, and particular persons. Having gone thusnbsp;far, they descended lower and lower in their religious notions, till theynbsp;at length reached the depth of superstition in which they have now fornbsp;ages been sunk. The religious worship of China is three-fold.

Tlie first of these (to which the Emperor and all his nobles belong) was invented by the Chinese legislators for the purpose of controllingnbsp;the minds of the people, without which they imagined they could notnbsp;rule over their bodies. This system identifies the Chinese rulers withnbsp;ideal spirits, demons, gods, and invisible powers ; and their object is tonbsp;make the people believe that they can act as mediators between themnbsp;and heaven, and can bring down blessings upon them from on high. Thenbsp;emperor (as has before been stated when speaking on government), isnbsp;considered the head of this branch of religious worship, which has thenbsp;smallest number of followers of any of their systems,* The cataloguenbsp;of canonical objects of adoration established by the state rulers is quitenbsp;appalling. Among them may be noticed, the earth, the sun, the moon,nbsp;the emperor�s ancestors, Confucius, Shin-nung (the inventor of agriculture), the inventor of silk, the spirits of heaven, the gods of thenbsp;earth, the god of the passing year, the worthies of antiquities, the stars,nbsp;clouds, winds, rain, the ocean, rivers, streams, the five mountains uponnbsp;which the ancients sacrificed, flags, the north pole, the polar star, thenbsp;gods of the gate, gods of the soil, gods of the cannon ; with numberlessnbsp;others, to which new ones are continually being added. In short, as itnbsp;was said of the gods of ancient Greece, �No one can tell how manynbsp;there are not.�

A prominent feature in the state religion of China is the worship of the dead. The emperor and the peasant alike bow down to the shadesnbsp;of their ancestors. They resort annually to the tombs of their relations,nbsp;which are always built over their graves on the sides of barren and uncultivated hills. When arrived there the Chinese make prayers andnbsp;oflerings, consisting chiefly of gold and silver paper, which theynbsp;bum, and afterwards ornament the graves with long gaudy flags andnbsp;streamers.t

The Chinese make their idols of clay, gilded over ; they place them upon a table, at one end of the large hall which forms part of theirnbsp;temples, the walls of which are covered with historical paintings, andnbsp;the roofs adorned with dragons, griffins, and other imaginary creatures,nbsp;reminding the Christian of the Chambers of imagery,� described bynbsp;Ezekiel the Prophet. � The actual place of worship which contains thenbsp;images is a hundred feet square, and is supported by rows of pillars.

* The sacrifices offered by the emperor or his proxies are very costly, consisting of many hundreds of cows, pigs, sheep, goats, and hares annually. The lower orders generally offer prepared food, or bum paper and matches, with gunpowder crackers. Mr.nbsp;Gutzlaff says, that the cost of the gold and silver paper burnt in China in a year exceedsnbsp;a hundred times all the money collected in the Christian world annually for bible, tractnbsp;and missionary societies ! See � China and the Chinese.�

See Malcom�s � Travels in China,� p. 47. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; See Ezek. viii. 7�12.

Mr. Malcom says, there are 124 idol-temples in Canton, besides the numerous public altars to be met with at every turn in the streets. Henbsp;observes, � the Chinese temples strikingly reminded me of the monasteries of Europe ; cloisters, corridors, court-yards, chapels, image-houses,nbsp;and various offices are scattered with little regard to order, over a spacenbsp;of five or six acres. Priests, with shaven crowns and rosaries loiterednbsp;about them, but I never saw the people come to worship at any. Thenbsp;daily monotonous unmeaning worship is performed by the priests alone,nbsp;which consists in muttering a few prayers, while they keep time with anbsp;wooden drum, and occasionally a bell. The whole number of priestsnbsp;in Canton is 2000, of nuns 1000. A quarter of a million of dollars isnbsp;yearly expended on the 124 temples in Canton, and the same sum uponnbsp;the annual festivals. The pagodas are tall narrow towers with sevennbsp;or nine successive stories, each story containing an idol.* On festivalnbsp;occasions, the Chinese temples are filled with the fumes of sandal-woodnbsp;and incense, the efiulgence of tapers, the burning of tinsel, and thenbsp;sound of the gong ; all of which the Chinese consider as essential tonbsp;propitiate their deities. As is the case with all false worship, the priestsnbsp;hve on the meats and offerings prepared by the people for the idol,nbsp;thus making their hearts meny upon the credulity of the worshippers.!nbsp;The state religion of China prescribes a tedious number of festivalsnbsp;during the year, among them are, the ploughing festival,�the feast ofnbsp;the birthday of the gods of the city ; the feast of the tombs of theirnbsp;ancestors, and the feast of lanterns, besides numerous minor festivals ;nbsp;among which is the feast of � the birthdays of the heavenly Spirits!�nbsp;Oh ! that man (whose mind was first made in the image of his Creator,)nbsp;should be sunk so low in ignorance and superstition.!

Taouism is so named from Taou, its founder, who was contemporary with Confucius. He inculcated on his followers a contempt for riches,nbsp;honours, and worldly distinctions, and the subjugation of every passionnbsp;that could interfere with personal tranquillity and self-enjoyment. Uponnbsp;these doctrines have since been founded the most visionary and souldegrading tenets, so that Taouism has become a religion of jugglerynbsp;and cheating, a system of pretended magic, of the most puerile nature,nbsp;and among other impostures which are practised by its priests for the

* See Malcom�s � Travels in China,� p. 48. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; See � China and the Chinese.�

� Confucius (whose tenets the adherents of the state religion chiefly follow) wrote the celebrated four books, to w�hich the Chinese attach so much reverence. Dr. Morrison,nbsp;after reading them, saj�s of their author, � He seems to have been an able and uprightnbsp;man, who rejected the superstitions of the times, but had nothing that could be callednbsp;religion to put in their place. Confucius decided on the duties between man and man.nbsp;Respecting the gods, he was unable to judge, and thought it insxdting to them to agitatenbsp;the question^ and therefore declined it.�

sake of gain, is a kind of animal magnetism ; by which they convulse their bodies to a most fearful degree, to make the common people believe they are possessed by spirits. The professors of Taouism, alsonbsp;worship an innumerable host of deities.*

The third, and by far the most prevailing religion of China, is Budd-huism, which has already been described in the chapters on Ceylon and Burmah. Chinese History relates, that in the year a.d. 58, the Emperornbsp;Ming-te, in consequence of a dream which he had, sent ambassadors tonbsp;�the west� (or India) in search of � the holy one,� whom the greatnbsp;Chinese philosopher Confucius had pointed out, should at this timenbsp;appear in the world. These ambassadors brought back with them somenbsp;priests of Boodh, (or Buddhu,) and some sacred books in the Pali, (ornbsp;Sanscrit) language, and the Chinese Boodhist priests, Mr. Malcomnbsp;says, pretend to recite their prayers in this language now.f Thisnbsp;superstition spread rapidly in China, and has ever since been the mostnbsp;popular worship, especially among the lower orders. Instead of thenbsp;one single representation of Buddhu, which the Cinghalese and thenbsp;Burmans worship, the Chinese Buddhist make three images of the samenbsp;god, which they always place side by side ; they are precisely the samenbsp;figure, with only a difference in the position of the hands. They intendnbsp;these three figures to represent the Past, the Present, and the Future;nbsp;but all three are � Fo,� or Buddhu. (The name of the Chinese Deity,nbsp;�Fo� is sometimes spelt � Fohi,� and is the old orthography of thenbsp;word � Fuh,� which is the Chinese abbreviation of Fuh-ta, or Boodha.)nbsp;Sir William Jones says confidently, � Boodh was unquestionably thenbsp;Fo-e of China.� J The superstitions of Boodhism in China are in allnbsp;points the same as those in Ceylon and Burmah, and the inhabitants ofnbsp;Tartary and Thibet, who are not Mahometans, follow the same creed,nbsp;and call their principal deity, the � Lama,� or � Dalai Lama.�

Besides the idol � Fo,� or Boodhu, worshipped under the three-fold image, the Chinese Boodhists also pay adoration to � Tien-how,� thenbsp;Queen of Heaven, which notion they have most probably derived fromnbsp;the Jesuits; for in one of their own books, they give a very tolerablynbsp;accurate outline of the history of the birth, life, and death of ournbsp;blessed Saviour, substituting only Chinese names for Israelitish ornbsp;scriptural ones.�

No Chinese family, either ashore or afloat, is without its little altar ; nor does a sun set without each being lighted up with tapers, and incensed with fragrant matches. Besides the gaudy domestic altar, w�ith

See Malcom�s � Travels in China and Ilindostan,� p. 47. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;J Ibid. p. 49.

its flaunting mottoes and varied tinsel, nearly every house has a niche in the wall where tapers and jos-sticks are burned ; and there are littlenbsp;public altars at intervals in the streets. Every twilight the air is loadednbsp;with sandal-wood smoke. Jos is the Chinese word for image, so theynbsp;call their smaller temples � jos-houses,� and jos-sticks are pieces ofnbsp;sweet sandal-wood, to bum before it. The Feast of Lanterns takesnbsp;place on the first full moon of the new year, and is a display of ingenuity and taste in the construction of a variety of lanterns made ofnbsp;varnished silk, horn-paper and glass, stretched upon frames often threenbsp;or four feet in height, and from two to three in diameter.

Buddhism prevails all over that part of the Chinese empire inhabited by the Tartar tribes ; its principal seats are Thibet, Botan, and Cashgar.nbsp;It is known very widely in Asia under the appellation of Shamanism,nbsp;especially in Siberia,�the visible head of which religion, (the dalai-lama) resides in a magnificent palace at Lassa, the capital of Thibet.nbsp;He is believed to be animated by a divine Spirit, and is regarded as thenbsp;Vicegerent of the Deity on earth. They assert that the death of thenbsp;grand lama is nothing more than the transmigration of the spirit intonbsp;another body ; thus they make a god of a poor, weak, vile, sinfulnbsp;mortal !

The Impostor of Mecca, for 600 years, has had his numerous followers scattered over the islands of the Chinese Seas, and on the forbidden soil of China itself, where Mahometanism, triumphing, not by the usualnbsp;methods of fire and sword, but by the milder arts of proselytism, hasnbsp;shamed the puny efforts of Christians in a holier cause.*

� Help us,, O Lord our God ; for we rest on thee,, and in thy name we go against this multi-tude. O Lord,, thou art our God ; let not man prevail against tlwe?'' 2 Chron. xiv. 11. � Behold^ they are all vanity \ their works are nothing i their molten images are wind andnbsp;confusion^ Isaiah xli. 29.

This great empire has long been the scene of Roman Catholic missions. Pope Innocent IV. sent out missionaries to China in 1246. But the Portuguese Jesuits were the first to establish a permanent footing in the country, and this was done through the labours of Francisnbsp;Xavier and Ricci. By great talents, and adroit and pliant conduct, thenbsp;latter became the object of admiration to the Chinese. At his death in

1610, thirty churches existed in one of the provinces of China. Since that time the Jesuits have been tolerated by some emperors, and violently persecuted by others. Dissensions at length arose among theirnbsp;own order, which proved a greater drawback to their missions than allnbsp;the opposition from Chinese governments. The Jesuits allowed thenbsp;converts to retain many of their idolatrous superstitions ; and whilenbsp;they took away from them some of their clay-gilt gods, they substitutednbsp;in their stead the images of the virgin, amp;c., and relics of saints.*

Dr. Morrison thus writes from Canton in 1808 : � Lord�s Day, April 4. I again read the Scriptures with my Chinese inmates. Innbsp;the evening I succeeded in keeping one of them, while I engaged innbsp;prayer as well as I could in his own tongue. When I spoke to him ofnbsp;the idols and offerings of the heathen temples, he referred me to thenbsp;example of the Portuguese at Macao, who had similar idols andnbsp;offerings.�

Mr. Bridgeman, an American missionary, thus writes in 1830 ; � Whether so intended by them or not, the Roman Catholics have givennbsp;great support to the idolatry of this empire. If they have not done thisnbsp;by withholding from the Chinese the Bible, they have done it by thenbsp;performance of their own rites and ceremonies. So small is the apparent difference between the religion of the Roman Catholic, and that ofnbsp;the Chinese, that it is not strange that Father Premare (a popish priest)nbsp;should have said, � In no other part of the world has the Prince ofnbsp;Darkness so well counterfeited the holy manners of the true Church.� �

The credit of awakening public attention in England to the spiritual concerns of China, seems to belong, in the arrangements of a Divinenbsp;Providence, to a memoir written by the Rev. W. Moseley, of Hanley, anbsp;dissenting minister, since well known as W. Moseley, L. L. D. whosenbsp;little work met with approbation from several dignitaries of the Churchnbsp;of England. Upon the motion of Joseph Hardcastle, Esq., and Josephnbsp;Reyner, Esq., two of the directors of the London Missionary Society innbsp;1806, it was determined to commence a mission to China, and the following year Mr. Morrison, then a student at the Society�s institution atnbsp;Gosport, was chosen to be the first missionary sent out. He was thenbsp;son of a humble boot-last maker at Newcastle, and had worked at hisnbsp;father�s trade in his youth�-teaching himself Latin during his intervalsnbsp;of leisure, with the occasional assistance of a school-master. His unwearied diligence and perseverance in acquiring the Chinese language,nbsp;were almost unparalleled, as also his labours at the translation of the

* See � China and the Chinese,� p. 126. � Life of Dr. Morrison,� voi. i. p. 205.

Holy Scriptures into that difficult and most peculiar language, which he completed (with the assistance of his colleague Mr. Milne) in fifteennbsp;years. From 1813, he preached regularly in English and Chinese,nbsp;either at Canton or Macao, and not without some effect being produced on his little congregation. *

In 1830 the American Board of Missions sent two missionaries to Canton, and one of them, the Rev. C. Bridgeman, in concert with Dr.nbsp;Morrison, in 1832, published the following statement of what had beennbsp;done for the evangehzation of China, and its thi-ee hundred millions.

� Twenty-five years have elapsed since the first Protestant missionary arrived in China (in 1807) alone, and in the midst of perfect strangers,nbsp;with but few friends, and with many foes. The Chinese language wasnbsp;then thought almost insurmountable from, its peculiar difficulties, butnbsp;these difficulties have been overcome. Dictionaries, grammars, vocabularies, and translations have been penned and printed. Chinese scholars,nbsp;both in England and China, have increased. Tlie Holy Scriptures bynbsp;Morrison and Milne, together with the Book of Common Prayer, andnbsp;numerous tracts, have been translated, printed, and published in thenbsp;Chinese language ; and now, missionaries from other nations f havenbsp;come to aid in their distribution and explanation.� There are also nativenbsp;Chinese, who preach the Gospel and teach from house to house. Tennbsp;Chinese have been baptized, and only ten ; but they are a firm andnbsp;devoted little flock. The establishment of Enghsh presses in Chinanbsp;arose out of the Protestant mission. The East India Company�s pressnbsp;to print Dr. Morrison�s dictionary, was the first, and now both Englishnbsp;and Americans endeavour by the press to draw attention to China, andnbsp;give information concerning it and the surrounding nations. The London Missionary Society�s Chinese press at the Anglo-Chinese Collegenbsp;at Malacca, or Singapore, and Mr. Medhurst�s press at Java, have sentnbsp;forth millions of pages, containing the truths of the everlasting Gospel ;nbsp;and the Chinese Institution at Malacca belonging to the London Missionary Society has given a Christian education to numbers of Chinesenbsp;youths. About ten years after the Protestant mission was establishednbsp;in China (viz. 1817), a chaplain for the British factory at Canton wasnbsp;sent out by the Episcopal Church in England, and in 1827 a seaman�snbsp;chaplain was sent out by the American Seamen�s Friend Society ; Dr.nbsp;Morrison hoisted the first British flag for public worship on the Chinesenbsp;waters in 1822 ; Mr. Abeel, an American missionary of the Dutch Reformed Church, officiated in 1830, and afterwards Rev. E. Stevens fromnbsp;Connecticut. The � Indo-Chinese Gleaner� at Malacca, the Canton

newspapers, and the � Chinese Repository,� (a valuable work) have all risen up since our mission commenced. Missionary voyages have beennbsp;performed,�three by that indefatigable man, Mr. Gutzlaff, of thenbsp;Netherlands Missionary Society,�and Chinese sought out at numerousnbsp;places under European controul, as well as in Siam, the Loochoo Islands,nbsp;Corea, and along the coasts of China itself, as far as the walls of Pekin.nbsp;Some tracts have reached and been read by the Emperor himself.nbsp;StiU, this is but the � day of small things.� � The harvest indeed isnbsp;great, but the labourers are few.� Preachers and teachers, and writersnbsp;and printers in much larger numbers, are wanted to spread the knowledge of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, among the Chinese-lan-guage nations.� It will be borne in mind that this was written innbsp;1832 ; much more has since been done, and yet the last words of thisnbsp;statement are as true and applicable as they were twelve years ago.

An article in the � Chinese Repository,� for 1835, gives a statement of the � Obstacles to the Diffusion of the Gospel in China,� which havenbsp;for so many years been in active operation in China ; but may now, bynbsp;the late important events attending the Chinese war, be in some measure lessened ; and, on the other hand, a view of the � Encouragements�nbsp;to the same : which we will abbreviate for the information of thosenbsp;readers who may not have been able to inform themselves before onnbsp;this subject.

1st. The hostile attitude of the Chinese government towards all foreigners entering the dominions of China.

2nd. The laws against the propagation of any new religion. The three Chinese sects, the Confucian, Taou, and Buddhist, are tolerated ;nbsp;but Christianity, as taught by the Jesuits, has long been a proscribednbsp;religion by the government.

3rd. The system of national education. In all the schools the same books are used, consisting of the maxims and instructions of their sacrednbsp;sages, which give to every Chinese his bigotted adherence to the customs and rites of their false creed, and a deadly apathy to all seriousnbsp;religion.

4th. The language. Government forbids any native to teach his language to a foreigner, or to sell him any Chinese books. Both thesenbsp;laws can be easily evaded in times of peace ; but if any disturbancesnbsp;arise, or an edict comes out against the Christians, the Chinese flee fromnbsp;foreigners. Besides this, the language, though it certainly can be attained, cannot be acquired in its purity, without a long course of yearsnbsp;of the most persevering effort.

1st, The extensive diffusion of knowledge, and the taste for reading. It has been estimated that nearly nine-tenths of the adult males are ablenbsp;to read, though not one-tenth of the female population. Books may benbsp;manufactured with surprising cheapness. The priests of Buddhu foundnbsp;books of great use in spreading their religion in China. There is nownbsp;scarcely a house so poor, that some well-worn book will not be foundnbsp;occupying a shelf.

2nd. The strong common sense that distinguishes the Chinese from other Asiatic nations ; they demand a reason for what they are callednbsp;to believe ; and pagan priests are not held by them in great veneration.

3rd. The friendly disposition of the common people towards foreigners and foreign intercourse, which, whenever it has been attempted, theynbsp;have always favoured.

4th. The recent movements of the Christian world, with regard to an enterprising commercial spirit. *

A few extracts from Mr. GutzlafTs letter, written at Macao, to the Church Missionary Society, when they first meditated sending out anbsp;mission to China, in October, 1835, may not be inapplicable here.

� Ere your letter reached me, your episcopalian brethren in America had anticipated your wishes, and sent out two missionaries to thesenbsp;lands. In regard to the accessibility of the maritime provinces, I cannbsp;only say I have made seven voyages along the coast, and at each tournbsp;distributed an enormous number of books without the least difficulty,nbsp;conversing with the people upon the doctrines of the gospel. The freenbsp;trade is extending its range, and the facihties will every year becomenbsp;greater. As for the Chinese government, it is opposed to every improvement, and as bigotted as the conclave at Rome, Yet neither thenbsp;apostles nor reformers waited till governments proved favourable to thenbsp;gospel, but went on boldly in the strength of their Lord. It is thenbsp;work of God, and the united powers of Satan will not hinder it here. Inbsp;have been myself decried and watched by the court, and been declared anbsp;traitor ; but nevertheless I am still alive, and in much weakness carrying on the work of the Lord. We want men here who are at allnbsp;times ready to lay down their lives for the Saviour. As pioneers, theynbsp;must be men of talent ; or otherwise they will not acquire the language.nbsp;As a place for preparation, I propose Singapore ; as a station in China,nbsp;Ilang-choo, an immense city on the Tseen-Tang river ; but this mustnbsp;be left to circumstances brought on by the mighty hand of Providence.nbsp;The Roman Catholics have lately made many converts ; and many ofnbsp;their missionaries (chiefly French) have proceeded into the interior.

In consequence of this letter, the Church Missionary Society sent out Mr. and Mrs. Squire to Singapore, in 1837, who began diligently tonbsp;learn the language. Mr. Squire visited Canton and Macao in 1839 ;nbsp;and informed the Church Missionary Society there appeared to be nonbsp;serious obstacles to missionaries settling at either of these places, wherenbsp;four American missionaries had already been for some time located.nbsp;Shortly after this the war took place, which was followed by a peace,nbsp;granting advantageous terms to Great Britain, and ceding an island onnbsp;the shores of China to the British crown.

The London Missionary Society for nearly forty years, and the American Missionary Socities for more than twelve years, have steadily prosecuted preparatory measures, for the moral and intellectual improvement of China, carried on chiefly at the British and other European settlements of Java, Penang, Malacca, Singapore, and Macao, where multitudes of Chinese constantly resort, and take up their residence fornbsp;purposes of commerce ; but now they can approach nearer to the scenenbsp;of action, and carry out their measures and plans under the protectionnbsp;of British laws and British government, without fear of molestation, onnbsp;the very borders of China itself. The London Missionary Society hasnbsp;sent two physicians to Hong-kong ; and Mr. Milne has gone to Chusan,nbsp;visiting Ning-po from thence. And, in 1843, some of the Americannbsp;missionaries took up their abode at Amoy and at Hong-kong.

Every Chinaman regards China as his home : there his affections centre, there are his wife and children. His sole object in leaving hisnbsp;native country is money ; and when that object is gained, he returns tonbsp;China at once. Hence, all those Chinese at Malacca, Singapore, andnbsp;other stations in the Indian Archipelago, are wanderers, and therefore itnbsp;is not so easy to secure their attention to divine things, as those who livenbsp;permanently in their own country ; another advantage of stations innbsp;China itself, over those at a distance ; though the distant ones are verynbsp;suitable and advantageous as outposts, at which to acquire the Chinesenbsp;language.*

* See also remarks of the American missionaries, in � Missionary Register� for 1843, p. 378.

ment in Chinese, and the Old as far as the Psalms, at the Serampore press, with moveable metallic types. Dr. Morrisonnbsp;circulated 2000 copies of his own edition of the Chinese Newnbsp;Testament at Canton, which had been printed by woodennbsp;blocks ; which mode, in China, is cheaper than metallic types,nbsp;and better liked by Chinese readers. The advantage of thenbsp;metal types is, that being finer and smaller, they take up lessnbsp;room on the paper, and from them both sides of the papernbsp;can be printed, which cannot be done from cut wooden blocks.nbsp;Mr. Milne, Dr. Morrison�s coadjutor at Canton, being drivennbsp;from thence by the Portuguese at Macao, went to Malacca,nbsp;and established the London Missionary Society mission there,nbsp;and was joined by Mr. Thomsen.

Doctrine of Jesus Christ and an � Outline of the Old Testament and printed Dr. Morrison�s Chinese � Hymn Book,� and first No. of � Chinese Monthly Magazine.� Jesuits persecuted by the Pekin government. Dr. Morrison accompaniednbsp;Lord Amherst�s embassy to Pekin.

stationed at Batavia, in Java), established a printing-press of Malay and English types, set up at Malacca by the Londonnbsp;Missionary Society. Dr. Morrison finished his Chinese Dictionary, which had occupied him ten years of hard unremitting labour. It consists of three parts : 1. Chinese andnbsp;English, arranged according to the 214 radical characters ofnbsp;the Chinese language. 2. English and Chinese. 3. Chinesenbsp;and English arranged alphabetically. It contains 40,000 Chinese words or characters, and was printed at the expense ofnbsp;the East India Company, at Canton, from wooden blocks.

Malacca ; and a weekly lecture in Chinese, in a heathen temple. The Chinese temples are like large rooms, and if divested

of all their horrid pictures and images would not make bad Christian churches ; and the Chinese are not particular, itnbsp;seems, as to Christians entering them. Dr. Morrison finishednbsp;translating the Church of England Prayer Book in Chinese.nbsp;Mr. Milne preached twice every sabbath-day in Chinese, andnbsp;Mr. Medhurst assisted in the Chinese weekly lecture. Anglo-Chinese college established by Mr. Mdne, at Malacca, at whichnbsp;Chinese scholars are clothed, fed, and supported for six yearsnbsp;each.

12,000 Chinese. Ten lectures on the Lord�s Prayer, preached by Mr. Milne on Thursday evenings in the Chinese temple,nbsp;printed and published. Dr. Morrison finished and circulatednbsp;Isaiah in Chinese,�printed at Malacca,�and November 25,nbsp;he completed the translation of the whole Bible in Chinese,nbsp;in which Mr. Milne had assisted him ; and in the New Testament he was assisted by a manuscript copy taken out withnbsp;him from the British Museum, translated originally by thenbsp;Jesuits. Mr. Medhurst, this year, had four Chinese schoolsnbsp;at Malacca. He visited the Dutch island of Rhio, and Ponti-ana and Sambas, stations on the western coast of Borneo.

the East India Company. (Singapore was colonized in 1819.) First mention of � a few� Chinese having � cordially embraced Christianity.� Penang station commenced.

a little before his death, an Exposition of the Epistle to the Ephesians, in which no pains were spared to make it acceptable to the inquisitive Chinese. It contained 86000 differentnbsp;characters, and was cut on wood by Chinese printers at thenbsp;cost of �50 the wood blocks. Serampore Baptists finishednbsp;printing the whole Chinese Bible from metal types, after sixteen years� labour.

Anglo-Chinese College at Malacca, was fifteen,�twelve Chinese being on the foundation. One of the tracts formerly printed at their press was brought back to Dr. Morrison by anbsp;Chinese for him to � look at,� as � a very curious book!�nbsp;This year Dr. Morrison�s Chinese Bible was finished printingnbsp;at Malacca, from wooden blocks. Tlie British and Foreignnbsp;Bible Society had contributed �6000 towards the expense.nbsp;Leang-Afa, a Chinese printer, and a convert to Christianitynbsp;(now serving as teacher to the London�Missionary Society�snbsp;mission) had the privilege to commence and also to finish thisnbsp;great and laborious work. Dr. Morrison went to England,nbsp;and remained two years.

of the propagation of Christianity, whose chief object was to collect and communicate a knowledge of the language, habits,nbsp;and opinions of heathen nations throughout the world. Lordnbsp;Bexley was made President, and S. Hoare, Esq., Treasurer.nbsp;Mr. Samuel Kidd joined the Malacca mission, and was madenbsp;Principal of the College.

Dr. M.�s absence in England, Leang-Afa continually exhorted his countrymen to read the scriptures, and was zealous amongnbsp;them.

sixteen on the foundation. Great increase of schools, and circulation of books and tracts, at Malacca, Singapore, andnbsp;Penang. Translation of Mongohan scriptures completed.

saw forty of their broad sheet scripture tracts pasted on the inner walls of one house.

Leang-Afa, on the difficulty the Chinese had in comprehending the Bible, from their ignorance of the customs and manners ofnbsp;Judea and the East. This year Afa was ordained to preachnbsp;among his countrymen ; and bv his means another convertnbsp;was added to the church at Canton. The number attending

the daily prayer-meeting at the Malacca college increased. Sometimes a hundred were present.* Mr: Tomlin, Londonnbsp;Missionary Society, and Mr. Gutzlaff, Netherlands Missionary Society, visit Bankok in Siam, where they found anbsp;great opening for circulating the scriptures among the Chinese. The persecutions they met with from the Portuguesenbsp;Roman Catholics only made the people more eager to flock tonbsp;them in immense numbers.

aries to Canton, Mr. Bridgeman, and Mr. Abeel. (The latter a member of the Dutch Reformed Church.)

ton, and suffered much persecution. Leang-Afa�s Essays on the Christian System of Religion printed and published. Theynbsp;are very highly spoken of by Dr. Morrison. Leang-Afa wasnbsp;cruelly beaten, imprisoned, and spoiled of his goods,�butnbsp;when released, he continued undaunted, and preached thenbsp;Gospel from house to house. A union of Christian inquirersnbsp;at Canton, send to Malacca for Chinese Bibles ; and Leang-Afa�s father joined his son in praying to the true God.

this year. Considerable increase of schools had taken place both Chinese and Malay, and there were 140 female scholarsnbsp;in one of nine Chinese girls� schools, and forty Malay girls ;nbsp;but this provoked the Malays to say, that nothing but thenbsp;Koran should be read by their children in the schools.

ing Scriptures and Tracts, Three more Chinese Converts added to the little Church at Canton.

* See � Missionary Register� for 1829, p. 178, fora short touching letter from � Simple Hin-le-twang, an inquirer into the truth.�

ble and persevering Missionaries, that have been raised up by Providence in these latter times. The lamented Morrison,nbsp;and Carey of Serampore, both the greatest Translators ofnbsp;their day. Dr. Morrison died at Canton at the age of 53.nbsp;Dr. Carey had been forty years in India, and Dr. Morrisonnbsp;twenty-seven in China. The life of this wonderful and talentednbsp;man, who was born of humble parents at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and whose whole life was one of toil and labour, is bothnbsp;very instructive and deeply interesting. His name will longnbsp;be remembered by all who are interested for China and itsnbsp;millions of idolaters.

R. Morrison was at considerable expense to release them from fines and imprisonment. Mr. Gutzlaff, with Gordon, a merchant, made an expedition to the Ankoy and Bohea Tea Hills,nbsp;but were prevented going any further into the interior by thenbsp;Chinese authorities.

to encourage the writing and printing of useful literature for the Chinese nation. An edict issued against the printers ofnbsp;Christian books in Canton, which obliged Leang Afa to go tonbsp;Malacca.

Malacca College, is sent forth as a Missionary to his countrv-men. This year the number of Chinese Christians at Malacca was thirty.

to Singapore, to learn the Chinese language, preparatory to commencing a Mission to China.

1842. Peace ratified between these two countries. Hong Kong ceded to Great Britain, removal thither of the Anglo-Chinese College, and of some of the London Missionaries. An English

gentleman bequeaths �6000, especially for a Mission to China. Lamented death of Mr. J. R. Morrison, son of Dr. Morrison.

1843, 1844. Two Clergymen of the Church of England are sent out by the Church Missionary Society to China.*

The Directors of the London Missionary Society have lately published the following interesting statement of facts, which have taken place duringnbsp;the past year,�� Our importunate supplications continued throughnbsp;years of anxious watching and eager hope, have reached the ears ofnbsp;the Lord of Hosts, and are answered ; answered to an extent beyondnbsp;our most sanguine expectations. Keying, an imperial Commissioner,nbsp;and viceroy of the province of Canton has presented a memorial to thenbsp;Emperor in behalf of Chinese Christians, which has been accepted,�nbsp;which acceptance will prove an important era in Chinese History. Bynbsp;this memorial, the religion of the Lord of Heaven is no longer prohibited to the subjects of the Emperor of China ; and � France, as wellnbsp;as all other foreign countries that follow the Christian Religion, are to benbsp;permitted to erect churches for worship at the five ports open for foreignnbsp;trade : � and the only restriction to this edict, is to prevent foreignersnbsp;from propagating their faith in the interior of the country, at the samenbsp;time the only visitation such intruders are to meet with, is that of beingnbsp;handed over to the nearest Consular officer of their own nation fornbsp;punishment. The London Missionary Society�s efforts have been muchnbsp;increased and encouraged by the passing of this edict of the Emperor,nbsp;and they are building chapels at Shanghai and Amoy, and making excursions into the country to preach the Gospel.�f The Church Mis-� sionary Society have sent out Messrs. Smith and M'Clactclire tonbsp;China, who are entering with zeal and energy on their arduous andnbsp;momentous labours. At a meeting at which Mr. Milne lately presidednbsp;in London, he stated, that there are now as many as fifty missionariesnbsp;and catechists in China, chiefly of the American and London Societies.

* The above Chronological Table has been carefully compiled from the � Missionary Registers,� and � The Life of Dr. Morrison, edited by his Widow.�

The Japan islands are thickly peopled, and as regards the nature of its institutions, and character of its inhabitants, this Empire bears some resemblance to China. The stormy seas that dash around the islands,nbsp;form a prominent feature in their geographical position. They are traversed by mountain ranges, in which gold and silver are found, sulphurnbsp;is obtained in great abundance, and coal in the northern parts of thenbsp;group. Japan (like China) is under the influence of an oriental clime,nbsp;but its temperature is lower than that of Morocco, Madeira, and Spain,nbsp;which lie under the same latitude. In the northern island the wintersnbsp;are long and severe, and the Scotch fir, the pine, and larch, the sprucefir, and lime, abound, while the gardens of England are indebted fornbsp;some of their choicest treasures to the plants and shrubs of the southernnbsp;islands, as the hydrangea, the olea fragrans, aucuba japonica, andnbsp;pyrus japonica, camellias, magnolias, bignonias, laurels, syringas, ilexes,nbsp;and others. The population of Japan is so great, that all wild quadrupeds have been extirpated. The Japan peacock is a most wonderfulnbsp;and magnificent bird, and the crisped cock, and the silk cock, are bothnbsp;beautiful and curious.

Japan was entirely unknown to the ancients, and from its own records little certainty can be obtained as to its political history. The intercourse of Europeans with Japan, is to us the most interestingnbsp;part of its history, though it has scarcely afiected the destinies ofnbsp;the Empire itself. The Portuguese, who were the first explorers ofnbsp;this, as well as of every other part of the Asiatic coast, did not atnbsp;first encounter that deadly jealousy with which Japan was afterwards closed against Europeans. They were allowed to establish anbsp;factory for trade at Feriendo, (a small island just opposite the southernnbsp;extremity of the peninsula of Corea,) and no opposition was made tonbsp;the introduction of their Missionaries. Francis Xavier (the chief ofnbsp;the Jesuit Missionaries) made Japan the principal theatre of his preaching, and many of the Japanese embraced the Roman Catholic faith ;nbsp;but before many years had elapsed, these fair prospects began to benbsp;clouded over, the nobles of Japan became impatient of the restraintsnbsp;imposed on them by their new teachers, and the jealousy of a despoticnbsp;government was kindled by the introduction of new doctrines, habits,nbsp;and ideas from a foreign nation, who they conceived might employ these

changes as a prelude to conquest. Some rash steps taken by the Missionaries, and the accounts of Portuguese proceedings in other partsnbsp;of the east, soon raised this hostile feeling to the highest pitch, and anbsp;general persecution commenced against all who professed th� Portuguesenbsp;faith, whether natives or foreigners, attended with that unrelenting severity which characterizes the people of Japan. The Japanese Christiansnbsp;suffered long, with a constancy peculiar to themselves, and the Portuguese were at length, all either put to death or expelled from thenbsp;islands. The Dutch afterwards attempted to make a settlement fornbsp;commerce at Japan, as did likewise the Russians by way of Kamtschatka and the Kurile Islands, but their attempts were frustrated in thenbsp;end, by the jealousy and determination of the Japanese Government.*nbsp;The laws of Japan are extremely rigorous and severe, and may be saidnbsp;(even more emphatically than were those of Draco,) to be written innbsp;blood ; but capital punishments occur less frequently than in most nations.

The people are confined entirely to their internal resources, and strict prohibitions are enforced against any trade with foreign nations.nbsp;Rice is cultivated in great abundance, and is said to be the finest innbsp;Asia ; wheat, barley, and turnips are also produced, but not to so greatnbsp;an extent. The mulberry is cultivated for the silk it produces, and teanbsp;is in as great demand as in China, but care is taken that it does notnbsp;encroach upon other products, for which reason it is planted only innbsp;hedges or in spots which would be unfit for the spade or the plough.nbsp;The Japanese resemble the Chinese in their form, dress, and features,nbsp;but they differ essentially from them in character. Instead of thatnbsp;quiet and servile disposition which renders the Chinese the preparednbsp;and ready subjects of despotism, the Japanese have a character markednbsp;by energy and independance, and a lofty sense of honour. They arenbsp;kind and good humoured, when nothing occurs to rouse their hostilenbsp;passions, but their extreme pride gives rise to the deepest and mostnbsp;implacable resentment, when any injury, real or supposed is sustainednbsp;by them. The Buddhist superstition prevails in Japan. No Protestantnbsp;Mission has yet been established in the Japan Islands. The minds ofnbsp;the Japanese are active, and imbued with the most eager curiosity uponnbsp;all subjects. Their language and their mode of printing are the samenbsp;as in China, but they do not display that disdain of every thing foreign,nbsp;which is such a bar to improvements among the Chinese.

The East Indian Archipelago is the name of the sea in which is found that extensive range of islands denominated Sumatra, Java,nbsp;Borneo, the Moluccas or Spice Islands, the Philippines, New Guinea,nbsp;amp;c. amp;c. Sumatra is a mountainous island, and situated in the centrenbsp;are four volcanos, which are said to rise 12,000 feet above the level ofnbsp;the sea. The coasts are inhabited chiefly by Arabs and Malays ; * thenbsp;northern and interior parts of the island are peopled by the Battas, anbsp;savage and cannibal race of people. The town of Bencoolen, on thenbsp;south-western coast of Sumatra, was the principal station of the Eastnbsp;India Company. AU the English settlements in Sumatra were givennbsp;up to the Dutch in 1825, in exchange for Malacca. A great part ofnbsp;Sumatra is marshy and uncultivated, or over grown with dense forests ;nbsp;and on its hiUs grows the plant which produces pepper, the commoditynbsp;which Europeans principally seek in this island, and for trading innbsp;which they have formed settlements. This island excels aU othernbsp;countries in the abundance and excellence of its camphor, which isnbsp;much used by the Chinese.

The Baptist Missionaries have laboured either at Bencoolen or at Padang (the principal Dutch settlement on the island) since 1819.

* The Malays are a distinct race from either the Hindoos, the Chinese, or the black savages of Borneo and New Holland. They are of a bright copper-colour, and nearernbsp;allied to the Madagasse and the Polynesians.

Many of the inhabitants on the coast are of the Mahometan faith, which was introduced by the Arabs. Mr. Crawford supposes Sumatranbsp;to contain 2,500,000 inhabitants.

Java is one of the most important islands in the Archipelago, and has been more visited by Europeans than many of the others :nbsp;it surpasses all the rest in fertility, population, and general improvement. The animals appear all small and inoffensive, as cats, rats,nbsp;monkeys, squirrels, polecats, bats, amp;c. Its birds are very beautiful.nbsp;Vegetation in Java is very rich and luxuriant. Coffee was introducednbsp;by the Arabs. Forests of teak flourish in the island, and bamboosnbsp;and rattans abound. The inhabitants were brought under the influencenbsp;of Mahometanism, in the sixteenth century by Arabian merchants.nbsp;The remains of splendid temples, and of numberless images scattered throughout the island of Java, show that Boodhism prevailednbsp;here at one time. Temples to Siva and other Hindoo deities are alsonbsp;by no means uncommon. The Javanese are more civilized thannbsp;most of the races inhabiting this range of islands. Java has beennbsp;estimated to contain 6,000,000 of inhabitants ; but the Missionariesnbsp;represent the number to be between four and five millions. The Javanese are destitute of that polished and courteous address, which distinguish the Hindoos and the commercial Arabs ; but they are frank andnbsp;honest, and much greater reliance can be placed upon their word, thannbsp;on that of the last named people. Though generally subject to a despotic government, they retain strong and lofty feehngs of personal independance, and every man goes about armed with a dagger, which henbsp;regards both as the instrument of defending himself, and avenging hisnbsp;wrongs. Dramatic entertainments of a rude and peculiar nature are anbsp;favourite amusement in the islands. Dancing is also a very prevailingnbsp;occupation of this people, especially at court. The best Javanesenbsp;houses are simple, slight structures, composed of Bamboo, rattan, palmetto leaf, and grass, and consist often of nothing more than fournbsp;pillars, and a roof beautifully carved and painted, but the houses ofnbsp;chiefs are divided into com apartments by slight partitions. The dressnbsp;of the Javanese consists of a long robe, wrapped round the body andnbsp;fastened by a girdle, over which is a kind of loose jacket. The Mahometans wear a cap, resembling a turban ; but the rest of the inhabitantsnbsp;wear the head bare. They are great smokers and opium eaters, andnbsp;make considerable use of ardent spirits, in defiance of Mahometan injunctions. Batavia is the capital, not only of Java, but of all thenbsp;Dutch East Indian possessions. The English and Dutch, who oncenbsp;contended with each other for supremacy in these seas, placed the centrenbsp;of their commerce and dominion on the northern coast of Java. Batavia

in 1824 contained 53,800 inhabitants, of whom 23,600 were Javanese or Malay, 15,000 Chinese, 12,000 Slaves, 3000 Europeans, and 600nbsp;Arabs. Britain receives cotton, nutmegs, pepper and rice from Java.nbsp;The Baptist Missionaries have laboured here for many years undernbsp;great obstacles and difficulties. Mr. Medhurst�s labours here were chieflynbsp;directed to the Chinese. The Dutch have done little or nothing tonbsp;christianize the people.

The Molucca Islands are remarkable for the abundance of their spices. The clove and nutmeg trees grow in profusion in these islands, and thenbsp;betel pepper, the leaves of which are used so much by all East Indians,nbsp;but especially by the Malays. (It has an inebriating quality, and isnbsp;chewed like tobacco.) The clove is the unexpanded flower-bud of anbsp;beautiful and aromatic shrub, and is a very valuable article of commerce. The whole plant is covered with minute glands, containing thenbsp;essential oil that gives the delicious aromatic odour to the clove. (Itsnbsp;name is derived from the French word clou, a nail.) Mace is the outernbsp;covering of the fruit of the nutmeg, and these trees abound in thenbsp;Moluccas ; they grow to the height of forty or fifty feet, and, like thenbsp;clove-tree, live to the age of seventy-five, or even a hundred years.nbsp;Mr. Howard observes, � It seems reserved for missionary enterprise tonbsp;bring to hght the numbers and condition of mankind in the numerousnbsp;islands of these seas, as Borneo, the Moluccas, the Banda Islands, andnbsp;the Philippines.

Amboyna is a small island belonging to the Dutch, thirty-two miles long and twelve broad, situated south-west of Ceram, one of the Moluccas, and the principal of the Dutch settlements in these seas. Herenbsp;the zealous Dutch missionary, Mr. Kam was sent in 1813 ; he labourednbsp;here for twenty years among the Malays ; a great many of whom arenbsp;Christians converted by means of Dutch ministers. The Netherlandsnbsp;Missionary Society originates in the Dutch Reformed Church, whosenbsp;establishment is Presbyterian, and its doctrines Calvinistic. In 1815 itnbsp;sent five young men to the north coast of Celebes, to the islands ofnbsp;Ternate, Ceram, Timor, and the Banda isles. The Dutch Governmentnbsp;as early as the year 1733 translated and distributed throughout its possessions in the Molucca Islands the whole Bible in Malay, and thoughnbsp;the best means were not used to convert the natives, nor the best motives always urged, nor the greatest caution always displayed in receiving candidates into its church, yet the members of the Dutch East Indianbsp;Company, who traded to these islands, always thought it a duty incumbent on them to do something for the heathens they conquered. Whennbsp;Holland was in the possession of France (from 1800 to 1814), the Netherlands Missionary Society sent its missionaries to the Directors of thenbsp;London Missionary Society, who engaged to send them out under itsnbsp;auspices, as it was then impracticable for it to send them on its ownnbsp;account. The income of this (the Netherlands) Society in 1840, wasnbsp;�8000. They had at this time a missionary at Rhio, a Dutch settlementnbsp;near Singapore.*

Celebes and Gilolo, the largest of the Moluccas, or Spice Islands, present the usual spectacle in these eastern seas of a rude people gov-emed by a number of turbulent chieftains. The Bugis, a native tribe ofnbsp;Celebes, are the ruling and most actively commercial people in the eastern Archipelago. The Dutch have possessed themselves of Macassar,nbsp;to the south of the island.

Borneo, if we exclude New Holland, will rank as the largest island in the world, being from eight to nine hundred miles from north to south,nbsp;and seven hundred from east to west. It is well gifted by nature, andnbsp;from the mountains in the interior descend large and numerous streams.nbsp;Rice, and the usual tropical grains, are easily raised ; and pepper, cinnamon, cotton, and coffee grow wild. According to Mr. Hunt, thisnbsp;island enjoys the remarkable felicity of the absence of any ferociousnbsp;animal. Its inhabitants are at present (as far as we are acquainted withnbsp;them, which is but very slightly) exceedingly rude and barbarous. Thenbsp;Malays occupy the sea-coasts, and they describe their inland neighbours

in very dark colours, though perhaps their accounts are not altogether to be depended upon. The aborigines of Borneo are of the black oriental negro race, while the Malays are of the brown or pale copper colour.nbsp;They are represented as fierce, cruel cannibals, and are known by thenbsp;name of Dayas, or Dayaks. Mines of gold, and splendid diamonds,nbsp;second only to those of Golconda, are found in Borneo. The mines arenbsp;worked by the Chinese. The entire population of Borneo is stated tonbsp;be only 500,000. That of Celebes is 1,000,000.

The Philippines form an extensive group of two large and nine smaller islands, and are peculiarly favoured both in soil and climate. The Spaniards early took possession of these islands, and if we except thenbsp;English expedition of 1762, have continued to hold them apart fromnbsp;the intrusion of any other European power. Their exports are valuable,nbsp;consisting of rice, ebony, sharks� skins, indigo, sugar, dried flesh, mats,nbsp;and cloth. The trade has increased nearly one half since the Spanishnbsp;revolution in 1824 and 1826, which loosened the ties between thenbsp;mother-country and her colonies. The Spaniards have nominally converted a great part of the inhabitants to the Romish faith. They havenbsp;taxed them heavily, but they have not cramped their industry, and theynbsp;have imparted to them some knowledge of European arts and learning.*

In treating of this part of the world, we shall divide our subject into two Parts :�Part I..New Holland, and Part II. New Zealand, and describe each Part separately.

This extremely large island is situated between the Indian and South Pacific Oceans, and has been computed to be nearly 3000 miles fromnbsp;east to west and 2000 from north to south. Only a very small part ofnbsp;it has been visited or colonized by the English. It is supposed to consist very much of barren and waste land, occasioned perhaps by thenbsp;scarcity of rivers and the arid nature of the soil. Even the banks ofnbsp;rivers which form the most fertile parts of other countries, are herenbsp;peculiarly naked and sterile.

The colony of New South Wales, and those which were subsequently formed, called � Southern Australia,� and � Swan River Settlement,�nbsp;consist chiefly of grassy plains, with some occasional patches of wheat-land. The nature of the soil seems to render this country peculiarlynbsp;fitted for the production of that fine wool, which has been the chiefnbsp;source of prosperity to the colony. There appears to be very fewnbsp;mountain ranges in Australia, and those which have been met withnbsp;do not any of them exceed 5000 feet in height. The Blue Moimtainsnbsp;run to the west of the colony of New South Wales and from thesenbsp;flow the Darling, the Macquarie, and other streams that flow towardsnbsp;Sydney. More to the south are the Warragong Mountains, or thenbsp;chain known to the colonists hv the name of the Australian Alps ; from

these descends the Murray River, which waters the lately-formed colony called South Australia. From its principal town of Adelaide to thenbsp;Swan River Settlement on the western coast, we fail (says Mr. Jameson)nbsp;to discover the mouth of a single river of any size or importance ; hencenbsp;the impossibility of exploring this vast territory. Every attempt thatnbsp;has hitherto been made to push discovery to any distance from the seacoast has been baffled by the want of water ; and our geographicalnbsp;ideas respecting four-fifths of the Australian continent must be limitednbsp;to mere conjecture, unless we adopt the opinion that a country whichnbsp;sends down no rivers to the sea-coast, must of necessity be unavailablenbsp;for any human purpose, and may be presumed to approach in characternbsp;to a desert. In the parts that are watered by small rivers and streams,nbsp;and have therefore been colonized by British emigrants, there is anbsp;greater predominance of plain or low country in proportion to the extent and elevation of its mountain regions, than in any other country.nbsp;Many of these grassy plains are rich and fertile, while others are aridnbsp;and sterile. The district about Port Phihp is more extensively fruitfulnbsp;than that about Adelaide.* Considerably more than half of the land innbsp;the Australian colonies is naked and arid, covered with a hard reedynbsp;vegetation called scrub, and unfit for any useful purpose. The samenbsp;deficiency of fertility renders the forests less dense than in most othernbsp;countries ; and over many tracts, trees are only thinly scattered.

Lake Torrens, which extends in a horse-shoe circle, north of Adelaide, is nothing but a succession of salt-ponds. The occurrence of numerousnbsp;salt lagoons, which have no communication with the sea, in all thenbsp;southern regions of New Holland, constitute one of the many physicalnbsp;peculiarities which distinguish this remarkable continent. In generalnbsp;their waters are more briny than the ocean, which can only be explainednbsp;by supposing that they are fed by springs which rise through soils andnbsp;strata strongly impregnated with chloride of sodium. They afford tonbsp;the pastures around by natural evaporation, a vast quantity of salt, anbsp;circumstance of importance in a pastoral country, as this mineral is indispensable to the health of sheep.

The rearing of sheep and cattle is the principal object to which the industry of the Austrahan is directed, and has proved to many a source ofnbsp;considerable wealth. Wheat and maize are the chief crops in the Newnbsp;South Wales colony. The wheat is sown in April, and reaped in October, after which maize is sown immediately, and reaped in March ornbsp;April. Two crops of potatoes may also be raised during the year.

vegetable productions are very peculiar, and suited to a dry soil and climate. The acacias are a numerous tribe, as are its cypresses andnbsp;myrtles. Garden vegetables thrive well in New Holland, and thenbsp;orange-tree has been raised to some extent in the neighbourhood ofnbsp;Sydney, in sufficient quantities to supply New Zealand with this valuable fruit. Our green-houses and conservatories have rendered usnbsp;familiar with the names and appearance of a great variety of the vegetable productions of New Holland, which however unimportant as food,nbsp;in the arts, or in domestic economy, are peculiarly interesting to thenbsp;botanist.*

There is a considerable coal formation on the east coast, north of Sydney. The climate of Australia is remarkably healthy ; although thenbsp;heat is very considerable, yet the air is so free from all moisture, that itnbsp;is found beneficial even to the most delicate constitutions.

The animals are chiefly of the kangaroo, squirrel, and opossum tribes; the great kangaroo is the largest quadruped of the Australian continent.nbsp;The total absence of such animals as lions, tigers, deer, oxen, bears,�nbsp;in short, of all the races spread over the rest of the world, is the mostnbsp;striking feature of the natural history of this region.f

The British government formed a settlement at Port Jackson (or more commonly called � Botany Bay�) in 1788, as a place of exile fornbsp;British felons or convicts, to which was given the name of Sydney.nbsp;Since that time the colony has continued to increase, both by the addition of emancipated convicts and their families, and by a constantnbsp;supply of emigrants from the mother country. The town and colony ofnbsp;Bathurst, westward of Sydney, was formed in 1815 ; and that of Hastings and Port Macquarie in 1817; Swan River settlement in 1826.nbsp;Southern Australia and Western Australia have been formed into colonies since 1830. In 1810, the inhabitants of the Sydney or Newnbsp;South Wales colony were estimated at 10,500 ; in 1822, they had increased to 40,000 ; and, in 1842, they numbered 100,000.1

* Mr. Jameson mentions that in York peninsnlar, on the sandy southern shore of New Holland, the mesembryanthemum, called the Hottentot fig, was found in great abundance. This, with the prevalence of acacias, shows the poor dry nature of the soil, andnbsp;suggests the ideas that soil and physical geography have a great connection with thenbsp;state of intellect in man ; also the absence of rivers, or their prevalence : witness thenbsp;Hottentot and New Hollander, the Hindoo and Chinese.

� According to the census taken in 1838, the proportion of religious denominations in

To those who are acquainted with commercial statistics, the importance of the Australian colonies to Great Britain are fully known and appreciated ; as, in proportion to the extent of their population, thenbsp;British inhabitants of these colonies exceed all other nations in thenbsp;amount in which they consume the products of British industry : fornbsp;instance, the amount of consumption of each individual in our Northnbsp;American colonies is as �1 Ils. 6d. per annum ; that of each person innbsp;the Australian colonies as �11 15s. 6d. in the course of the year.*

The executive power resides in the governor of New South Wales, who is assisted by a small council, consisting of the principal officers ofnbsp;the government ; while the legislature is shared by him with a council,nbsp;which includes a few of the principal settlers and merchants, bothnbsp;councils being appointed by the Queen. The military force stationed innbsp;the colony consists of two regiments, from which three companies arenbsp;detached to Van Dieman�s Land (or Tasmania). There is no fixednbsp;naval force ; but a single ship of war is sent to each of these coloniesnbsp;from the East Indian station. The colonial revenue, in 1822, wasnbsp;�47,700; in 1837, it was estimated at �200,000. They arise fromnbsp;taxes, duties, and office-fees, and the sale of the crown lands. It isnbsp;understood that the greater part of the latter source of revenue is to benbsp;expended in the conveyance of labouring emigrants from Great Britainnbsp;to the colony.f

the colony was as follows:�55,000 Protestants, 22,000 Roman Catholics, 477 Jews, and 100 Pagans. The total colonial population of Tasmania in 1836 was about 44,000.

We have hitherto described the small portion of Australia at present known to us, as it regards the British colonial population ; but undernbsp;the present head, we shall confine our observations to the Aborigines ofnbsp;New Holland, as they bear chiefly upon missionary operations. Thenbsp;natives of New Holland (or Australia) belong to the class of Papuas, ornbsp;oriental negroes ; the same race as inhabit New Guinea, Borneo, andnbsp;some of the more westerly islands of the Pacific. They are black, andnbsp;have the thick lips, white teeth, and, in Van Dieman�s Land, the woollynbsp;hair, of the African negro ; hut their nose is less flat, and their limbsnbsp;are slighter. They are in every respect the most uncivihzed portion ofnbsp;the whole human race, and present to view a very degraded people.nbsp;The whole race, however, must not be judged of from the specimensnbsp;seen around the British colonies ; for it is the fact�though a painfulnbsp;one, that the vices and bad habits of many of the European population,nbsp;have tended to make this people more corrupt than they were, even innbsp;their original state. Among those who have been well and kindlynbsp;treated, both by settlers and missionaries, there have been some well-spoken of by writers in Australia, as docile and teachable.

They are very thinly scattered over the countries bordering upon the colonies, and their numbers are rather diminishing than increasing.

They have no government, no society, no laws. The arts of life exist among them in their first and rudest elements. Fishing is their�mainnbsp;occupation, yet their canoes are rude beyond description, consistingnbsp;either of a sheet of tree-bark, folded and tied up at each end, or ofnbsp;several stems of the mangrove-tree (which grows in the swamps innbsp;which their coasts abound), tied together with the fibres of plants, uponnbsp;which they float upon the water. They show a great dexterity atnbsp;striking the fish with their spears. The natives of the interior subsistnbsp;with still greater difficulty upon roots and berries, which grow spontaneously, and upon the flesh of the squirrel and the opossum, which theynbsp;catch by pursuit or in snares ; or even some live on the worms andnbsp;grubs they find in the trunks of trees. Their huts are of the rudestnbsp;possible description, often consisting of the bark of a single tree, bentnbsp;in the middle, and placed on its two ends in the ground, affording onlynbsp;shelter to one miserable tenant. At other times, two or three pieces ofnbsp;bark put together, form a hovel, into which six or eight persons maynbsp;creep ; they generally wear no clothing except a skin occasionallynbsp;thrown over their shoulders ; but they are not insensible to ornament,nbsp;for they cover their bodies with a coat of fish-oil, and many hang aboutnbsp;their persons such embellishments as the teeth of the kangaroo, thenbsp;jaw-bones of large fishes, or the tail of the dingo, or native dog. Theynbsp;are well provided with arms, which consist of large shields of bark ornbsp;wood, and spears of various forms and lengths, which they throw withnbsp;great dexterity, and usually hit the object they aim at, even at the distance of seventy yards.* They are exceedingly revengeful, and sonbsp;superstitious, that they think every death is occasioned by the evilnbsp;suggestions of some of their fellow-creatures ; and they resort tonbsp;dreams and other superstitious modes of finding out the offender, who,nbsp;if discovered, is invariably put to death.f They behave very cruelly tonbsp;their women, often beating them most unmercifully. They appear tonbsp;have no religion, except what consists in a vague belief of spirits, and innbsp;some uncouth forms of witchcraft.

Their extraordinary dance, called � the Corriboro,� is well described in � Jameson�s Australia,� and in the Missionary Register for 1836.nbsp;On these occasions they smear their bodies with pipe-clay and red-ochre, to give themselves a more hideous appearance. The dance consists of extraordinary leaps, and jumping contortions of the body,nbsp;supposed to be in imitation of the kangaroo.

tribes of New Hollanders bordering on the New South Wales colony, invariably describe them as being an extremely degraded and unsightlynbsp;race of beings ; but Mr. Walker, a Wesleyan missionary, who settlednbsp;among a tribe that could speak English, in 1821, found some encouragement in endeavouring to instruct them, as they were pleased withnbsp;the idea that some one had come to live among them for their good,nbsp;and listened readily for a time to his instructions. Mr. Jameson, anbsp;surgeon who resided for some time in Australia, gives the followingnbsp;opinion respecting them : � One effect of continual hardship and privations, through a series of generations, is to eradicate from the humannbsp;countenance all traces of beauty and proportion ; and certainly the Newnbsp;Hollander ranks among the worst-featured and most unpleasant-lookingnbsp;people on the face of the globe. In the slenderness of their limbs andnbsp;their diminutive stature also, we perceive another evidence of the miserable life they lead. In the interior of New South Wales colony, nearnbsp;the rivers, which abound in excellent fish, the natives attain to a muchnbsp;greater size and strength than when their diet consists of opossums,nbsp;grubs, and reptiles. Indolence and aversion to labour is the principalnbsp;moral characteristic of these people. As they never attempt to shelternbsp;themselves from cold and rain, the mortality among their children isnbsp;very great ; and hence the smallness of their numbers.

� It is probable that all the natives within the compass of a hundred miles from Adelaide do not exceed in number seven hundred. Whennbsp;pressed by hunger, or desirous of the luxury of a little sugar or biscuit,nbsp;they will fetch wood and water to the settler�s door, but appear tonbsp;lament, by their slow and sauntering gait, that sugar and biscuit cannotnbsp;be obtained without working for it. With all this, they display a remarkable aptitude for acquiring the English language, and they havenbsp;learnt to wear garments, when given them by the governor, who alsonbsp;bestows blankets and provisions upon those tribes nearest the Englishnbsp;settlements. They possess great keenness of eye-sight, acquired by theirnbsp;habitual searching for food ; and over dry and grassy plains they havenbsp;traced the foot-steps of the bush-rangers for days together ; and theirnbsp;assistance as agents of the rural and border police is deemed indispensable. They are not of a cruel or warlike disposition, yet cannibalismnbsp;has been more extensively practised amongst them than is generallynbsp;supposed. A quaiTel between two natives is settled by a duel withnbsp;waddies (or short-knobbed sticks). One party, swinging his waddynbsp;round several times, brings it down with its accumulated impetus uponnbsp;the head of his antagonist, upon whose massive cranium it produces nonbsp;other effect than that of a shght headache ; the other combatant thennbsp;returns the compliment in kind, and the affair is terminated. Although

the New Hollander has lived amongst Europeans for the last fifty years, yet he is still ignorant of the first elements of the art of agriculture, andnbsp;it is doubtful if any have ever cultivated a potatoe on his own account.nbsp;The rivers (well stocked with fish) which rise on the western declivitiesnbsp;of the Australian Alps, affords maintenance to numerous tribes, whonbsp;are troublesome to the colonists in proportion to their numbers.

� The quarrels that usually take place between them and the settlers are very much owing to the uncompromising spirit of the latter, whonbsp;talk of the blacks as having no claim to the protection of the law, or tonbsp;any of the privileges or immunities of human beings ; nay, the crimenbsp;of shooting a native is not regarded in the jurisprudence of � the bush� asnbsp;amounting to murder. Yet those who have gained experience in dealingnbsp;with the natives, find no difficulty in maintaining a friendly intercourse.nbsp;But the lives and property of remote settlers cannot be safe, unless theynbsp;will themselves subdue their own wrathful feelings, and regard the nativesnbsp;as untaught children of the forest, whose territory has been invaded, andnbsp;their hunting-grounds wrested from them by the white man�s flocks andnbsp;herds ; and who are therefore objects of commiseration, rather thannbsp;of enmity. Under the influence of a more Christian treatment, thenbsp;aborigines are doubtless capable of becoming far more civilized than theynbsp;are at present. They have frequently been employed as shepherds andnbsp;stockmen in the interior of New South Wales colony, and they havenbsp;been found on board trading vessels, performing the duties of ablenbsp;seamen. That they are so little removed from barbarism may be owingnbsp;to a want of moral protection, and it is certain they owe very little to thenbsp;colonists as teachers of morality.� *

* See � New Zealand, South Australia, and New South Wales.� By G. ft. Jameson, Esq. 1842. pp. 60�64. The same author mentions, while making a coasting trip tonbsp;explore the new settlements of South Australia, �We had on hoard our schooner threenbsp;native lads, who we intended to employ in the discovery of fresh water. One of them,nbsp;a 6ne lad of fifteen, besides speaking English with great fluency, possessed an exhaustless flow of animal spirits, and bore in his countenance an expression of intelligence,nbsp;archness, and good-humour. The other two were less animated, but by no means deficient in comprehension. On this and on other occasions I was convinced that the Newnbsp;Hollanders are not so abased in intellect as some writers would lead us to suppose ;nbsp;and I will venture to assert, that in general the conformation of their heads is not phre-nologically defective, and that the radical vice of their character is indolence. Of thenbsp;powers of reflection and reasoning they are not devoid ; and it is very easy, by kindnessnbsp;and good treatment, to gain their strong and lasting attachment.�

� Wherefore should the heathen sag. Where is their Godt let him he hnown among the heathen in our sight.quot; Psalm Ixxix. 10.

New Holland or Australia, did not become the theatre of any Missionary operations with regard to its aboriginal tribes, till the year 1821, when the Wesleyan Missionary Society sent a Missionary to thenbsp;neighbourhood of Sydney. An institution for the instruction of suchnbsp;native children as could be collected had been formed at Paramattanbsp;in 1814, under the auspices of the Governor of New South Wales, andnbsp;once every year the different native tribes were assembled near Sydneynbsp;and feasted with� beef and potatoes, and sent back to their bush withnbsp;presents of blankets and tobacco ; but it was Christianity which theynbsp;needed to raise them from their debased condition, and hitherto theynbsp;had learnt nothing from Europeans, but the too general vices of thenbsp;convicts and emigrants. The labours of the Wesleyans were at firstnbsp;pretty successful, as the Missionary succeeded in gaining the confidencenbsp;of some few of the natives, and collected some boys for instruction ;nbsp;but upon two of the number dying, the superstitious fears of the remainder caused them almost all to return to the bush. A Bible Societynbsp;had been formed in 1816, for the colony of New South Wales, undernbsp;the patronage of Sir T. Brisbane, the Governor, and in 1822, a Biblicalnbsp;Library was formed at Sydney to assist in the translations of the scriptures in the Austral�sian and Polynesian languages. In 1824, thenbsp;Institution for the instruction of the aborigines was removed fromnbsp;Paramatta, and on the spot chosen were erected a place of worship,nbsp;school-house, and workshops, with the approval and assistance of thenbsp;Church Missionary Society: the Rev. S. Marsden, Senior Chaplain innbsp;New South Wales, appointed Mr. and Mrs. Clarke, to superintend thisnbsp;establishment ; they continued there a year, and made some satisfactorynbsp;progress with the natives, though they had many difficulties and hardshipsnbsp;to contend with, being removed nearly from all civilized society. Mr.nbsp;Clarke had twelve native youths living under his care, and about thatnbsp;number of adults regularly attended Divine Worship on the Sabbath ;nbsp;what results this small beginning might have produced, had it been persevered in, cannot now be ascertained ; but Mr. and Mrs. Clarke werenbsp;thought to be more required as teachers in New Zealand, so they werenbsp;obliged to discontinue their labours among the natives of New Holland.

In 1825, a new government station was formed for English settlers at Moreton Bay, a little to the north of Sydney, and here the London

ACCOUNT or MISSIONARY LABOUR. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;2.57

Missionary Society established Mr. Threkeld as Missionary to the Aborigines, who were found to consist of a very superior race of natives to those in the immediate neighbourhood of New South Wales and Portnbsp;Philip. The Government granted the Society 10,000 acres of land fornbsp;their Mission. Mr. Threkeld commenced his labours by studying thenbsp;language, with a view of reducing it to a written form ; he found it hadnbsp;considerable resemblance to the Tahitian language.

The Wesleyan Mission to Australia prospered at this time ; it was situated about twelve miles from Paramatta ; and 20,000 acres of landnbsp;were granted by Sir T. Brisbane the Governor, to the Wesley ans : annbsp;assistant whom they sent out this year to learn the state of the natives,nbsp;discovered, that there were at Wellington, about 200 miles north-west ofnbsp;Sydney, five tribes of natives consisting in number of some thousands,*nbsp;In 1826, the Wesleyans removed their Mission to Wellington Valley, asnbsp;the natives there were numerous, and more out of the influence of thenbsp;pernicious example of the lower classes of convicts. They representnbsp;them as taller, stouter, and more athletic than the blacks nearer thenbsp;colony, and having some notions of a supreme Being, to whom howevernbsp;they paid no worship, nor ever seemed to think of, excepting when itnbsp;thundered, and then their only sentiment was that of terror. They hadnbsp;also some ideas of a future state of existence, believing, that though theynbsp;� tumble down,� (the expression they use for dying), yet that they shallnbsp;� rise up again,� but only as human beings in this world, and that he whonbsp;has killed most of his fellow-men, shall rise up under the most adversenbsp;circumstances.! This year (1826), the Native Institution for the Aborigines, was recommenced by the Archdeacon of New South Wales, whonbsp;appointed Mr. Hall, late Missionary at New Zealand, to superintend it.nbsp;He resumed it with four New Zealanders, and nine New Hollandersnbsp;under his charge.

In 1829, the Lieut. Governor of Van Diemen�s Land, Colonel Arthur, was anxious to estabhsh a Mission among the wretched Aborigines of thatnbsp;colony, about 2000 in number, and applied to the Church Missionary Society for a Missionary ; but circumstances just then did not admit of theirnbsp;entering upon any new fields of labour. This year the London Missionarynbsp;and the Wesleyan Societies, both relinquished their labours in Australia,nbsp;partly from the numerous obstacles produced by the habits and circumstances of the natives, and partly from the very great expense attendantnbsp;on the adoption of any vigorous and extensive plan for localizing thenbsp;tribes, and bringing them under constant and regular instruction. Innbsp;1831, the Rev. Mr. Threkeld completed the translation of the Gospel ofnbsp;St. Luke into the language of the New Hollanders near lake Macquarie,nbsp;which was printed by the New South Wales Auxiliary Bible Society.

* See � Missionary Register� for 1826, p. 160. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f Ibid, for 1827, p. 122.

An elementary introduction to the native language, and a selection of prayers from the Liturgy, by the same person, were of great use tonbsp;Messrs. Watson and Handt, who were sent out as Missionaries to Wellington Valley in 1832, by the Church Missionary Society ; the colonialnbsp;government promising �500 per annum for the support of the Mission,nbsp;which grant was continued till 1837. The people were friendly, andnbsp;listened to their instructions. ' Mrs. Watson began teaching somenbsp;children on the Infant School system, which was found admirably wellnbsp;adapted to the natives of New Holland. After two years labour,nbsp;Mr. Watson�s journal shews that some impression had been madenbsp;upon the native mind, by the Missionaries. His journals at this timenbsp;present a striking view of the conflict between habits contracted innbsp;their pagan state�with the regenerating tendencies of the recentlynbsp;imbibed principles of the Gospel. Of the Wellington Valley Mission,nbsp;in 1840, the Committee of the Church Missionary Society thus writes :nbsp;� The great difficulties attending this Mission arise, not more out of thenbsp;deeply degraded condition of the Aborigines, than out of the demoralizing influence upon them of the convict population, on the outskirtsnbsp;of the colony.� Mr. Handt was this year appointed to the ministerialnbsp;charge of the new penal settlement at Moreton Bay, with instructions to attend to the Aboriginal population as circumstances mightnbsp;permit.

In 1840, two German Missionaries, and several lay assistants and arti-zans were established by the Berlin Missionary Society at Moreton Bay, on a plan of proceedings similar to the Moravian ; by which means thenbsp;number of persons engaged in the mission, afforded a means of protectionnbsp;and support amongst themselves against the conciliated and savagenbsp;natives. In 1840, the Wesleyans sent Missionaries to a station nearnbsp;Port Philip in South Australia, and to Perth at the Swan River settlement. The Wesleyan committee gives the following description of thesenbsp;wretched natives, with which we will close these few remarks��The condition of the Aborigines becomes still more deplorable as colonizationnbsp;advances. Their lands are rapidly passing into the hands of the settlers,nbsp;their gain is driven away by the new comers, and their esculent roots arenbsp;destroyed � by the white man�s sheep.� Thus deprived of the means ofnbsp;subsistence, and not daring to retire further back into the interior, lestnbsp;they should be murdered as intruders by other tribes, they generallynbsp;resort to begging or pilfering from the colonists, with whom they are innbsp;consequence often brought into painful collision. Loathsome diseases stillnbsp;aggravate the evils under which they are wasting away, added to thenbsp;feuds and deadly animosities which keep the different tribes in a statenbsp;of perpetual hostility with each other.�

New Zealand consists of two principal islands, and one very small one to the south of these, called Stewart�s Island. The northern islandnbsp;is termed by the natives Ea-hei-no-Maw�, or � the Child of Maw�nbsp;(the Spirit or Divine Being acknowledged by the New Zealanders beforenbsp;the introduction of Christianity) ; and the southern island is called bynbsp;them, Tavai-poenamoo, or � the Land of Green Stone,� from the greentalc stone found there, of which they made their battle-axes, hatchets,nbsp;and chisels, before they became possessed of iron ; also the small grotesque figures used by them as charms or amulets. The northern islandnbsp;is upwards of 500 miles in length, and 180 in breadth in the broadestnbsp;part ; and the southern island is 450 miles long, and 110 in the broadest parts.* The aspect of the coast of New Zealand generally, is thatnbsp;of a broken and rugged country, overspread with a most luxuriant, butnbsp;dark and sombre vegetation, growing on steep hills, and in deep ravines.nbsp;There are numerous large estuaries or bays, and both islands possessnbsp;the finest harbours in the world. Towards the interior of the northernnbsp;island are extensive table-lands, which have no forest trees, but are innbsp;many parts covered with a low, dense, vegetation of Tree-ferns, cabbagepalms, and myrtles. The great scarcity of grasses amongst its nativenbsp;vegetable productions is very observable in New Zealand, but somenbsp;grassy plains are to be met with in the southern and western parts.nbsp;Dense and magnificent forests clothe the valleys and hills in all directions, and show the effect of a climate permanently warm and humid.f-Most of the mountains in New Zealand have been at some former periodnbsp;volcanoes, as seen by their well-defined craters ; one called Tonga-riki,nbsp;in the centre of the northern island, is now in action, and is perpetuallynbsp;covered with snow ; it rises 7000 feet above the level of Lake Taupo,nbsp;which is a principal feature in this part of the country, and is thirty

miles broad. In the neighbourhood of the Bay of Islands there are no forests ; but on the western side of the island, near the river Hokianga,nbsp;there are very extensive tracts covered with Kaori timber, which oftennbsp;grows to the size of twenty and twenty-five feet in circumference, andnbsp;through the whole length of the peninsula that forms the eastern sidenbsp;of the frith of the Thames, there runs a range of mountains 4000 feetnbsp;high, clothed with most magnificent and luxuriant timber,* Both thenbsp;soil and climate of New Zealand are peculiarly favourable to vegetation.nbsp;The former needs but little culture to render it very productive. Thenbsp;vegetable kingdom in New Zealand being evergreen, the earth has notnbsp;been enriched, as in the Canadian forests, by the annual decay of fallennbsp;leaves, consequently the superficial stratum seldom exceeds a foot innbsp;thickness ; but we do not infer from this that it is not a productive soil,nbsp;for a land that nourishes the stateliest forests and the densest underwood in the world, cannot but be eminently fertile.f The timber ofnbsp;New Zealand is found extremely valuable, both to the builder, the shipwright, and the cabinet-maker ; and as many as sixty ditferent sortsnbsp;have been sent to England as specimens. Before the missionaries visitednbsp;New Zealand (in 1814) the natives cultivated nothing but yams andnbsp;potatoes : the lattei' are said to have been introduced into the island bynbsp;two native chiefs, who died in 1835 ; so that they could not have themnbsp;more than thirty years before the missionaries arrived. J The first temporary benefit conferred by the English catechists on these islandersnbsp;was the introduction of wheat, and the knowledge of its cultivation ;nbsp;and other settlers have since added maize and barley, and various kindsnbsp;of fruit-trees. Peach-stones that were scattered at random by the missionaries, produced groves of peach-trees, which bore most abundantly,nbsp;and the vine was found to thrive in some parts of the island. The missionary settlements are adorned with the cactus, the aloe, and the acacia ; and they have introduced most of the common European vegetables, which all thrive most luxuriantly. Indian corn. Cape barley, andnbsp;mangel wurzel, are much grown now for horses and cattle. Vast tractsnbsp;are stiU covered with numerous species of fern, many of them arborescent, and growing sometimes to the height of twenty feet ; their rootsnbsp;and the lower parts of their stems were formerly much used as food bynbsp;the natives, and also the root of a species of arum, which they callednbsp;taro. The forests are rendered almost impenetrable by the number ofnbsp;creeping plants which hang from the branches in festoons, and envelope

* III an account of a tour made by one of the missionarieB in 1839, he mentions a kaori tree � standing by the road-side forty feet in girth, with a clear straight stem ofnbsp;immense height.�nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;See Jameson�s � Australia and New Zealand,� p. 312.

the traveller in a species of net-work.* Parts of the country, especially in the centre, are thinly inhabited, on account of the scarcity of fuel ;nbsp;but the different pahs, or native settlements, scattered about Lake Tauponbsp;and Lake Roturua, contain about 5000 inhabitants. There are hotnbsp;springs round these lakes and also at Waimate, and the numerousnbsp;streams that flow towards the sea-coast from the mountainous centre ofnbsp;the island, are rendered more picturesque by occasional waterfalls, surrounded by landscapes of singular beauty and wildness. The climate,nbsp;as has been before mentioned, is extremely good and healthy, and entirely free from those pestilential winds to which some parts of Australianbsp;are subject. The nights are remarkably clear and star-light ; the thermometer usually ranges from 42 degrees in July, which is their winter,nbsp;to 72 degrees in January, which is the New Zealand summer ; and innbsp;the middle of the day is seldom so low as 50 degrees in the coldestnbsp;day of winter. Frost and snow are not often seen, except on the highest mountains, A great deal of rain falls during the year in the neighbourhood of the extensive forests, and much more on the western sidenbsp;of the island than the eastern.

There are properly no animals at all belonging to New Zealand ; for the pigs, and rats and mice, the only quadrupeds found in the island bynbsp;the missionaries, had been brought there by the whalers from othernbsp;countries. The inhabitants could not tell how long they had possessednbsp;the hog, but they were to be met with in great abundance, both wildnbsp;and domesticated.

We have not yet mentioned the most singular vegetable production of New Zealand, the phormium tenax, or native flax-plant, which isnbsp;quite peculiar to these islands. It is not like flax or hemp, in the appearance of the plant, being a kind of flag ; its fibres are remarkablynbsp;strong, and make excellent ropes and cordage, as well as strong coarsenbsp;garments. It grows also on Norfolk island. We learn from the Rev.nbsp;W. Yates�s History of the New Zealand missions, that the plough andnbsp;harrow were first introduced at the Waimate station in 1830. Till thesenbsp;instruments were brought into use, the people little knew what theirnbsp;land was capable of producing, as only small portions of it had hithertonbsp;been brought under cultivation, owing to the difficulty of breaking it upnbsp;with the hoe or the spade.

The principal towns of New Zealand, which have been built since these islands became a British colony, are Auckland, Wellington, Russell, New Plymouth, and Nelson. Wellington in 1840 contained 3000nbsp;inhabitants. The missionary stations contain a great number of houses

with neat churches and schools. They raise maize, fruit, and vegetables, in sufficient quantities.for their own consumption.

New Zealand contains some excellent coal,�some apparently of very recent formation,�and copper-ore, manganese, sulphur and other minerals, are supposed to exist in considerable quantities ; but the countrynbsp;has not yet been colonized a sufficient length of time, for these valuablenbsp;mineralogical resources to have been brought into use. Some of thenbsp;coal has been dug out, and the coal districts of the northern part of thenbsp;southern island may one day prove the Newcastle of this rising colony.*

The southern island was never explored by us till 1840 ; the French attempted a settlement on Bank�s Peninsula, a little while previous, butnbsp;they afterwards abandoned the project. Like the northern island, itnbsp;possesses many very excellent harbours, the principal of which arenbsp;Cloudy Bay, a favourite whaling-station in Cook�s Straits, Akarou Harbour in Banks� Peninsula, Port Otako towards the south, where a Scotchnbsp;colony has been formed, and Dusky Bay, at the south-western extremity of the island. A high chain of mountains runs through the wholenbsp;centre of the southern island of a bleak and savage appearance, andnbsp;covered with perpetual snow ; but the climate and the soil near the coastnbsp;possess as great advantages as in the Northern Island.

Steward�s Island is represented as extremely fertile and beautiful. Some few Europeans reside here, who are employed in boat-building,nbsp;and in the cultivation of wheat and potatoes, with which they supplynbsp;the whalers ; as also with pigs and poultry. Paroquets are found innbsp;Stewart�s Island. The rivers of New Zealand and its surrounding seanbsp;abound with fish. The whales are greatly diminishing in numbers, andnbsp;in process of time it is thought this fishery will cease altogether.

The first visit from Europeans to these islands was made by the celebrated Captain Cook, in 1774. From that time to 1814, when the Rev. Samuel Marsden commenced his indefatigable labours to bestow the blessings of civilization and religion upon these savage but noble-minded islanders, none had visited their shores but the captains and crews of the South-Sea whalers, who put in here for supplies of fresh water and provisions,nbsp;and who�melancholy to relate�were often guilty of the grossest crimesnbsp;and injustice towards the natives ; so that frequent remonstrances werenbsp;made to the English government by the early missionaries on this sub

ject ; and the destruction of the crew of the Boyd, in 1810, and other cruel atrocities committed by the barbarous New Zealanders, were butnbsp;acts of retaliation for injuries received from their foreign visitors. Thenbsp;Rev. S. Marsden did a great deal towards the redress of these grievances ; and after the missionaries were established in the island theynbsp;very much ceased. All offences committed by whaling crews werenbsp;ordered to be tried at Sydney in New South Wales, and the governornbsp;of that colony empowered the missionaries to act in some degree asnbsp;civil magistrates, and no English sailor was permitted to land exceptnbsp;under their sanction.

The New Zealanders possessed among themselves no sort of government whatever, further than that their chiefs possessed some authority in their own families ; and the most daring led their respective tribes tonbsp;war and plunder. Their system of tabooism was the chief instrument ofnbsp;power in the hands of these savage chiefs. By this system, certainnbsp;places, persons, and things, were declared to be sacred, and nobodynbsp;then dared to approach or make any use whatever of them ; and thenbsp;laws by which this custom was enforced were scarcely ever broken-The New Zealanders had no distinctions of rank or station between thenbsp;chiefs and their slaves ; all prisoners taken in war (when not killed andnbsp;eaten by these ferocious cannibals) not only were reduced to slaverynbsp;themselves, but bondage was entailed upon their children also. Havingnbsp;no mode of punishment, nor any satisfaction for offences committednbsp;among themselves, but an appeal to the war-club and the spear, thenbsp;New Zealanders were continually at war with each other, and thesenbsp;endless and bloody fightings, in which the horrid and barbarous practice of cannibalism formed a prominent and disgusting feature, provednbsp;one of the greatest difSculties the missionaries had to contend with,nbsp;during the first fifteen years of their arduous labours.

This little band of devoted labourers had to make known the very first rudiments of letters to these untaught savages ; their language hadnbsp;first to be fixed, before it could be taught to them, as they had no idea whatever of a written form of speech; and in 1814, when the first parcelnbsp;of ground was sold to the missionaries for twelve axes, the chief signednbsp;the document by drawing the lines and marks that were tatooed uponnbsp;his own face ! Further, there was every thing to be done in the country ; there were no bridges and no roads, the swamps were undrained,nbsp;and the land totally uncleared, save the little patches of ground aroundnbsp;their � pahs� (or fortified inclosures), on which the natives cultivatednbsp;their potatoes and � kumeras.� The simplest arts of life were to benbsp;either taught them or improved ; for except making their native matsnbsp;of the fibre of the phormium tenax, tatooing their faces, making their

canoes, and carving rude grotesque figures, which they placed on the fences of their strongly-fortified pahs, to intimidate their enemies, theynbsp;had no acquaintance with the simplest arts of civilization.

Mr. Marsden persuaded many of the New Zealand chiefs to visit him at Paramatta in New South Wales, for some years prievous to anynbsp;Missionary exertions being commenced in the islands themselves, andnbsp;thus he gained the good-will and affection of all the Bay of Islandnbsp;Natives, and laid the foundation for that attachment and regard to thenbsp;English nation, which this noble race of savages has ever manifested.nbsp;Several very pleasing marks of this kindly spirit have been related bynbsp;the Missionaries, who first settled at the Bay of Islands. The chiefs werenbsp;very anxious, that their sons should reside in New South Wales withnbsp;Mr. Marsden, and when a fever broke out and carried off seven youngnbsp;New Zealanders at the Paramatta Institution, still they wished theirnbsp;children to go there, and when they were dissuaded lest theynbsp;should die as the others had done, one chief exclaimed, � Then Inbsp;I will pray for my son, as I did for Tooi, (the chief who came tonbsp;England,) and then he will not die.� In 1816, fifty more acres of landnbsp;were purchased from the Chief Warrackie, for a Missionary settlement,nbsp;for which forty-eight axes were received in payment. At this timenbsp;some of the chiefs expressed great alarm, least the English shouldnbsp;deprive them of their lands. During the first ten years of the Mission,nbsp;these barbarous islanders made very rapid progress towards civilization,nbsp;they were' many of them most desirous of learning the common usefulnbsp;arts of life, taught them by the Missionaries, and they w�ere also verynbsp;apt scholars in learning to read and write, there was an inquisitivenessnbsp;about them, and a readiness to communicate knowledge (when acquired)nbsp;to their countrymen, which tended much to their general improvement.

For some years after the Church Missionary Society commenced its arduous labours in this island, the wars of the New Zealand Tribes werenbsp;more frequent and bloody than ever ; for the increase of their provisions,nbsp;attendant on their improved knowledge of agriculture, was hoarded up,nbsp;and reserved for the South Sea Whaling vessels, and then bartered fornbsp;muskets and ammunition ; but the consequence of this was, that theynbsp;dreaded the encounters of hostile tribes, as fire-arms proved morenbsp;destructive weapons than clubs and battle-axes, and thus in course ofnbsp;time their wars ceased, and the indefatigable and persevering toils of thenbsp;Missionaries were rewarded by their increased love of peace, and theirnbsp;determination to give up fighting and eating one another. Before thenbsp;Missionaries spread the light of the glorious gospel of peace amongnbsp;the New Zealanders, retaliation was their only law, war their chiefnbsp;delight and their glory, and feasting upon their fellow-creatures, their

horrible and savage amusement. The abominable practice of honouring the dead by human sacrifice existed in New Zealand, till the death of Shunghee in 1827.* Their only attempts at any thing like governmentnbsp;seem to have been their public discussions, to which children werenbsp;always admitted, that they might be initiated into all the customs andnbsp;manners of their ancestors. The power of their chiefs, their � Taboo�nbsp;rites, and the glory of war, were generally the principal subjects ofnbsp;these discussions. Mr. Jameson tells us, � The Institution of Taboo-ism placed much authority in the hands of the New Zealand chiefs.nbsp;In 1832, some of the principal chiefs wrote to King William the Fourth,nbsp;to petition him to protect them against the French, who it was thennbsp;rumoured, intended to take possession of the islands. Their letternbsp;showed their favourable disposition towards England, and their highnbsp;regard for the Missionaries who had laboured so long under heavy trialsnbsp;and difficulties amongst them. In consequence of this appeal,! thenbsp;English Government sent a consular agent to reside at the Bay ofnbsp;Islands. In 1839, a company of English settlers, entitled the � Newnbsp;Zealand Land Company,� purchased lands and erected the townshipsnbsp;of Port Nicholson and Wellington at the southern end of the northernnbsp;island, and this company was incorporated by royal charter for the termnbsp;of forty years, in the year 1841, the objects of the incorporation, beingnbsp;the sale, purchase, settlement, and cultivation of lands in New Zealand,nbsp;subject to the rules and regulations of the local government of thenbsp;islands. In February 1840, Captain Hobson was sent out by hernbsp;Majesty�s Government, and constituted Lieutenant Governor of the recently-formed Colony of New Zealand, and a treaty was then enterednbsp;into with the principal New Zealand Chiefs, forty-six in number, bynbsp;which both the two principal islands, and the island called Stewart�snbsp;island, were � ceded to Queen Victoria and her heirs for ever, and allnbsp;right and power of Sovereignty over the islands, was entirely vested innbsp;her Britannic Majesty.� J

The New Zealand Company have another very flourishing and fertile colony on the western coast of the northern island, to which they havenbsp;given the name of � New Plymouth.� It is here that the company

f In 1838 an association for colonizing New Zealand was unsuccessful in its attempts to procure the sanction of Parliament to its designs.

� This treaty, besides ceding the rights and powers of sovereignty over New Zealand to Great Britain, confirmed the natives in the possession of their lands, forests, fisheries,nbsp;amp;c., so long as they wished to retain them ; and gave to the British crown the exclusive right over such as the natives were disposed to alienate. It also granted to the Newnbsp;Zealanders all the rights and privileges of British subjects.�See � Missionary Register�nbsp;for 1840, p. 392.

made reserves of land for the use and occupation of the natives, which is the first instance of the kind that has occurred in the History ofnbsp;British Colonization. Land thus possessed, will acquire a very muchnbsp;higher value from its vicinity to a British settlement, with its markets,nbsp;commerce, and civihzed intercourse ; so that a native possessing hut anbsp;small portion of land thus settled, will be far richer than one who hasnbsp;ten times the amount of the whole island under the old system of barbarism.*

The population of the northern island of New Zealand was estimated by the missionaries at 90,000, but this is considered by some as exceeding the truth. The numerous tribes, although speaking the same language, have never constituted one nation ; for they are very widelynbsp;dispersed, and principally round the coasts, and so wooded and impassable has the country been that borders on the coast, that no communication was ever made by the natives from one remote part of the shorenbsp;to another, except by water.t Soon after New Zealand was erectednbsp;into an independent colony. Captain Hobson, the governor, appointednbsp;Mr. G. Clarke (catechist,) to the important office of Protector of thenbsp;Aborigines. The Church Missionary Society at this time granted �50nbsp;to each of the children of the missionaries, to be laid out in land fornbsp;their future benefit, in this, the country of their adoption.!

* See Jameson�s New Zealand. In 1840, the missionaries write from Port Nicholson, � This is an important era in the history of New Zealand. Christianity has rendered itnbsp;a safe residence for Europeans, which it was not a few years since. Enterprising Englishnbsp;settlers are now flocking to this fine country, and it will ere long, doubtless, be peoplednbsp;by white men.

See � Missionary Register� for 18.33, p. 61. � Ibid, for 1840, pp. 227, 8.

The New Zealanders have been considered the most ferocious cannibals, and the most warlike savages in the known world : cannibals they certainly were before the introduction of Christianity among them, andnbsp;they were not ashamed to admit it ; they were also a warlike people.nbsp;� And yet,� says the late Rev. Samuel Marsden, � they are a noble-minded people, and naturally kind and affectionate, and in many moralnbsp;qualities would often put nominal Christians to the blush.� *

Mr. Hay, under secretary of state in 1833, in a published official document respecting New Zealand, says, � The natives have an intuitive respect, blended with fear, for the English ; the chiefs, for thenbsp;most part, desiring to place themselves under British protection. Theynbsp;do not possess courage, but are cunning, fond of show, hardy and capable of undergoing great fatigue. They require to be treated with a mixture of kindness and firmness.�

The following little incident, which occurred at an early period of the mission, shows the fine natural temper and warm-hearted, though hastynbsp;spirit of the New Zealander. A chief, who was visiting Mr. Kendall�s

settlement, became very troublesome and boisterous, because he could not obtain an article he wanted, in exchange for his hogs and potatoes,nbsp;such article not being then in the settlement. Mr. Kendall endeavourednbsp;to pacify him, but in vain ; on his learning, however, from some of thenbsp;children, that his conduct had agitated and distressed Mr. Kendall, immediately, with the characteristic feeling and generosity of his countrymen, he ordered his hogs and potatoes to be brought to the house, andnbsp;told Mr. Kendall he was ashamed of his ingratitude, and would give hisnbsp;provisions for nothing, promising to abstain from all threatening language in future.*

The late Mr. S. Marsden observed of this people in 1820, that � they would rise in importance among civilized nations in proportion as knowledge was diffused among them.� He remarks : � Their reasoningnbsp;faculties are strong and clear, and their comprehension quick : whennbsp;once they attain a true knowledge of the Scriptures, they will improvenbsp;very fast, and may then be ranked among civilized nations.�

That this opinion formed of the New Zealanders, twenty years ago, has been fully verified, may be seen from the following statements published by the present Bishop of New Zealand, in February, 1842 ; � Inbsp;hope this letter will have put you in some degree in possession of mynbsp;feelings towards the natives, for whom I have imbibed the strongestnbsp;regard ; and I believe this country to be the ground-plot of one of thenbsp;most signal mercies which God has ever granted to the missionary exertions of His Church. On Monday, June 6th, I left Auckland for thenbsp;mouth of the Thames. On our way we called at Waiheke, where I sawnbsp;the first specimen of a thoroughly native village, and I can assure younbsp;the sight filled me with joy. We were met by the native teacher, William, a man of tall stature, and face deeply tattooed, but with all thenbsp;mildness and courtesy of a civilized Christian. He showed us his chapel, built of reeds, neatly bound upon a strong framework of wood, andnbsp;invited us to pass the night in a house of the same materials which henbsp;was building for himself, with glass windows presented to him by thenbsp;chief justice. The house, he says, is to have four rooms,�one for eating, one for sleeping, one for cooking, and one for a study,�for writingnbsp;has become one of the greatest pleasures of the New Zealanders ; andnbsp;it is very unusual to find one who cannot both read and write. Amongnbsp;the Christian natives I have met with most pleasing instances of thenbsp;expression of the deep and earnest feelings of their religion. In theirnbsp;affectionate and child-like behaviour to their missionaries we perceivenbsp;their sense of the incalculable benefits derived from them. The mis-

sionary is their friend and adviser on all occasions, having gained their confidence by imparting that which they know to be the most valuablenbsp;of all knowledge. More than 400 communicants sometimes assemblenbsp;at Waimate at the Lord�s table. On Sunday, I administered the Lord�snbsp;Supper to 150 natives at Paihia, and was much struck by their orderlynbsp;and reverential demeanour. All were dressed in European clothing,nbsp;and with the exception of their colour presented the appearance of annbsp;English congregation. In few English churches, however, have I heardnbsp;the responses repeated in the deep and solemn tone with which every Newnbsp;Zealander joins in the service. I have lately visited the native villagesnbsp;in the neighbourhood of Auckland : among others, the village of Putiki,nbsp;in compliance with a well-written invitation from the native teacher.nbsp;Wirima received me in his new house with a natural politeness and goodnbsp;feehng that would not have disgraced an English gentleman, and provided for our comfort to the best of his ability. On the following Sunday, the school, previous to divine service, was conducted in the mostnbsp;orderly manner, grown up men, in full English dress, standing round innbsp;classes, according to their proficiency, and reading and taking placesnbsp;with all the docility of children. I was much pleased with their acquaintance with the Scriptures ; in fact, there is scarcely an intelligentnbsp;native who will not readily find any passage in the New Testamentnbsp;which may be quoted. On the next morning we walked to Te Puru,nbsp;the village of the heathen chief Te Raia, one of the few remaining examples of the race of savages, who have now almost entirely passednbsp;away before the advance of Christianity. The behaviour of Te Raianbsp;was a striking instance of the indirect effect of Christianity, even uponnbsp;the unconverted ; his manner to us was mild and subdued. Many ofnbsp;his own people had become Christians, and had refused to share in hisnbsp;warlike expeditions. The most savage of the heathen chiefs seem onlynbsp;waiting a fit opportunity to lay down their arms, without compromisingnbsp;their false principles of honour. The interference of the British Government will furnish them with the excuse they desire, for living henceforward at peace, one with another.�

Having thus seen from the bishop�s letter something of the present character and attainments of these people, let us now retrace our steps anbsp;little in point of time, and see what they were some twenty, or five-and-twenty years ago. In 1820, Mr. Kendall, one of the first missionaries,nbsp;writes as follows : � Although I am under no fears respecting our personal safety, so long as we remain perfectly quiet and neutral ; yet,nbsp;owing to their unsettled state, we require at this time, not only thenbsp;assistance of our heavenly Master, but support and encouragement fromnbsp;our Christian employers.�

In 1820, two chiefs, named Shunghee and Wykato visited England : and these were the reasons for wishing to see our country, as takennbsp;down from their own mouths without any prompting by Mr. Kendall :nbsp;� We wish to see King George, the multitude of his people�what theynbsp;are doing�and the goodness of the land. We wish to stay in Englandnbsp;one month, and then return, with at least one hundred people to gonbsp;with us : we are in want of a party to dig the ground in search of iron ;nbsp;an additional number of blacksmiths, of carpenters, and of preachers,nbsp;who will try to speak in the New Zealand tongue, that we may understand them. We wish also for twenty soldiers, to protect their ownnbsp;countrymen, the settlers, and three officers to keep the soldiers in order.nbsp;The settlers are to take cattle over with them. There is plenty of sparenbsp;land at New Zealand which we will readily grant to the settlers. Thesenbsp;are the words of Shunghe.e and Whykato.� � *

The missionaries at this time write : � The condition of this noble race is most affecting, it shows the finest natural disposition abused andnbsp;held in bondage under the dark and cruel tyranny of the Prince of thisnbsp;world ; they are the subjects of a subtle and deeply-rooted superstition,nbsp;as yet very little understood in England.�

The New Zealanders were great travellers in their own country, and were often absent on their journeys ten or twelve months at a time.nbsp;We find Mr. Marsden thus writing in 1822, regarding these people:nbsp;� As they have no regular established government, it appears that allnbsp;crimes are punished either by an appeal to arms, or by plundering thenbsp;offender of his little property, and laying waste his potatoe-grounds.nbsp;After a battle, the heads of the chiefs who had been slain were cut oflnbsp;and carefully preserved by the enemy, and when the conqueror wishednbsp;to make peace he would carry the heads of the fallen chiefs to theirnbsp;tribe, and exhibit them to his adversaries, who cried aloud if they accepted the offer of peace, and remained silent if they rejected it, andnbsp;wished to risk another battle. Certain ceremonies were performed bynbsp;the priests over the bodies of the slain, and they then declared whethernbsp;or not their gods would be propitious to them. The New Zealandersnbsp;always roasted and ate the bodies of their enemies killed in battle, andnbsp;small portions were reserved for their gods, who were the first to partake of the sacrifice ! Their feeling, in this horrid and revolting custom,nbsp;seems to have been to satisfy their own mental gratification, and to

* It is a cause of thankfulness to Almighty God, that though Shunghee died, as he had lived, the savage, yet his associate, Wykato, believed by the missionary to be a truenbsp;convert, was lately introduced into the visible church by baptism : we may add,' thatnbsp;being asked by what name he would be called, he replied, � Hosaiah Parata i.e. Josiahnbsp;Pratt.

display publicly to their enemies their bitter revenge. It was also customary for them to taste the blood of those whom they ate, and theynbsp;then imagined that they should be safe from the wrath of the god ornbsp;spirit of him who had been killed. If the chief slain were a marriednbsp;man, his wife was given up to the victors to be killed, roasted, andnbsp;eaten, like her husband ; the bodies of the highest chiefs and theirnbsp;wives were considered tabooed or sacred (set apart for the gods), andnbsp;none touched or ate of them but the priests and priestesses. After anbsp;battle there were certain sacred services connected with these disgustingnbsp;exhibitions, at which the priests seem to have assumed the right ofnbsp;giving the answers to the prayers of the surrounding people. The bonesnbsp;of the dead they highly valued, and always carefully preserved, as memorials of their relations, or of the death of their enemies. The heads ofnbsp;those slain in battle they often stuck upon poles around their settlements. How painful must these exhibitions have been to the wives,nbsp;children, and subjects of their fallen chiefs, who, if not killed, werenbsp;made prisoners of war, and forced to labour upon the very spot wherenbsp;the heads were exposed to view ! *

Some of the chiefs once accounted to Mr. Marsden for the custom of eating one another, by saying, that they saw the larger fishes of thenbsp;sea eating other fishes : � Dogs will eat men,� said they, � and mennbsp;will eat dogs, and dogs devour one another ; the birds of the air willnbsp;also devour one another, and one god will devour another god. Mr.nbsp;Marsden could not understand how they made it out that the godsnbsp;devoured each other ; till one day Shunghee told him, that in one ofnbsp;his wars he had killed a great number of people, and he was afraid thatnbsp;their god would kill him in return (esteeming himself a god ! ) but thatnbsp;he caught their god (it being a reptile), and ate part of it, reserving thenbsp;rest for his friends, as it was sacred food ; and by this means he restednbsp;satisfied that they were all secure from his resentment !

The New Zealanders were very particular not to neglect any of the ceremonies relating to the cooking and eating of their food, enjoined bynbsp;the priests, before they went to battle, many of them assuming to themselves the attributes of deity while living, and were called gods by theirnbsp;countrymen after their decease. Mr. Marsden relates that he occasionally heard the natives saying, when Shunghee approached, � Hairemi,nbsp;Hairemi, Atua ! �� Come hither, come hither, thou god ! � A Newnbsp;Zealander once called Mr. Marsden�s attention to the spot where the

* In an instance that has lately come to notice, we find that the natives of a Christian village had actually left the hones of the slaughtered dead scattered about, in order tonbsp;remind them of the state of degradation from which the gospel had rescued them.

rays of the sun were gilding the sides of a distant hill, and said, � That is the Whydua, or spirit, of Shunghee�s father.�

The New Zealand chiefs always practised the barbarous custom of tattooing their faces, which is making various lines in a kind of patternnbsp;or device upon the skin ; the operation was done when they were young,nbsp;and was a very painful one, being generally performed by making incisions with some sharp instrument (the New Zealanders used a smallnbsp;sharp-edged bone), and applying the juice of a certain tree, which communicated a blackish colour to the wound which remained after it wasnbsp;healed. The chief Tooi wished to lay aside this barbarous custom, asnbsp;he said it was not used by the English ; but his brother Korro-korronbsp;urged it very strongly, saying, that � unless he were tattooed, he wouldnbsp;not support his rank and character as a gentleman among his countrymen.� Very strong natural affection is among the characteristic qualities of the New Zealander, and this was always shown in a very wildnbsp;and extravagant manner. After being separated from their near relationsnbsp;for any length of time, they would fall on their knees upon their firstnbsp;meeting again, and grasping each other, give vent to their feelings innbsp;tears and loud lamentations, which sometimes lasted for nearly an hour.nbsp;On Mr. Marsden�s third visit to the island, some of the sons of theirnbsp;chiefs returned with him to New South Wales ; and he thus describesnbsp;the parting scene :�� The chiefs took leave of their sons with muchnbsp;firmness and dignity, on deck, whilst the mothers and sisters of thenbsp;youths were cutting themselves after their fashion, and mingling theirnbsp;blood with their tears. Shunghee parted with his favourite son in thenbsp;cabin, without shedding a tear; but I afterwards saw him on deck,nbsp;giving vent to his feelings in the loudest bursts of weeping.� Theynbsp;give way to the most extravagant hopeless grief on the loss of theirnbsp;relations ; and would sit for months, night and day, weeping andnbsp;mourning for them. � The consolations of religion,� says Mr. Marsden,nbsp;� could not pour the oil of joy into their wounded spirits ; and in thenbsp;fullest sense of the words, they were � without hope, and without Godnbsp;in the world ; � and being deeply attached to their relations while ahve,nbsp;they were left wholly to the extravagances of their nature, when theynbsp;died.� When Mr. Marsden once saw the native women cutting themselves till the blood streamed down their faces and necks, upon thenbsp;death of a little child, he remonstrated with them, and told them henbsp;was much shocked, upon which they replied, � that the New Zealandersnbsp;loved their children very much, and .that they could not show it sufficiently without shedding their blood for them.� * This custom uni-

* � The more they wound their bodies,� says Mr. Marsden, � the more they believe they shew their love for their departed friends,�

versally prevailed among the people till after the introduction of Christianity.*

Under the influence of superstition many would devote themselves to death, and the chiefs always sacrificed a number of their slaves, as anbsp;satisfaction for the death of any of their near relations, and this customnbsp;prevailed till after the death of Shunghee, in 1827, when the chiefsnbsp;agreed together that not one should be slain ; so far had the influencenbsp;and example of Christians amongst them prevailed.

Almost one of the first prospects of success among this ferocious people was aflbrded to the missionaries about the year 1821 ; whennbsp;they rejoiced that they could perform divine worship in the open air,nbsp;without any molestation or sense of fear, when surrounded by anbsp;large body of natives, among whom were many chiefs from difierentnbsp;tribes and districts, with their spears stuck in the ground, and theirnbsp;pattoo-pattoos and clubs concealed under their mats.

The aflection of the natives for their benefactor Mr. Marsden, was very great indeed,�upon one occasion, during a journey he made throughnbsp;the island, he was accompanied by fourteen chiefs and their servants,nbsp;who, though poor ignorant savages, all vied with one another in theirnbsp;attentions to him. On coming to an extensive swamp, four of thenbsp;chiefs carried him safely through it upon their shoulders. He travellednbsp;in perfect safety in the midst of many hostile tribes ; the best hut wasnbsp;always set apart for his use, and wherever he came he was always amplynbsp;supplied with provisions.

This people worshipped no idols, that the missionaries could ever discover. � If they pay adoration to any object,� says the late Rev.nbsp;Samuel Marsden, � it is to the heads of their deceased chiefs ; for theynbsp;seem to think that deity always resides in the head.� Respecting theirnbsp;fears of divine wrath and vengeance, they would say, when reasonednbsp;with on the subject by the missionaries, � It is very well for you tonbsp;talk in that manner, whose God is good, and over whom the Atua ofnbsp;the New Zealander has no power ; but our god is always angry withnbsp;us, and in his anger would kill and eat us.� Mr. Marsden wrote, innbsp;1822:�� I never met with one native, who has not considered Godnbsp;a vindictive being, at all times ready to punish them for any ceremonial neglect, even with death. Hence they labour, by everj^ mortification and self-denial, to avert his anger.� A chief once burntnbsp;his house, which had been built very neatly, and had much carvingnbsp;about it, as he said, � to pacify his god.� f � They used to tell me,�

t In 1835, a native was telling Mr. Hamlin (a missionary) how their gods were seeking payment for the English teachers having violated the sacred places of the New Zea-T

says Mr. Marsden, � that I might violate their taboos, eat in their houses, or dress my food on their fires ; that their god would notnbsp;punish me, but that he would kill them for my crimes.� *

Mr. Williams, in 1824, thus speaks of the New Zealand character: � Though in war he is as ferocious as a human being can be, yet atnbsp;home he is another man. A chief once coming to a missionary, to begnbsp;for a teacher for his tribe, said, � he wanted a man who was not fond ofnbsp;fighting, and one who would not scold and make a noise.� � � Thisnbsp;people have great reflection and observation ; they study human naturenbsp;with the closest attention,� writes one of their missionaries, � and endeavour to find out every man�s real character from the whole of hisnbsp;conduct.� Among themselves they generally live in great peace andnbsp;harmony, and you never see a man, woman, or boy, strike each other atnbsp;home. The occasion of their frequent and bloody wars was their tliirstnbsp;for retaliation, and their bloody superstitious notions, which made themnbsp;feel bound to redress their family wrongs by sacrificing and eating thenbsp;otfender.

The New Zealander in personal appearance is, according to the accounts given of them by the missionaries, a fine dignified man, withnbsp;long straight hair, aquiline nose, and receding forehead. Mr. Wadenbsp;says, � they are tall, well-made, and athletic ; the women far inferior tonbsp;the men, being generally short and clumsy, with no delicacy of feature,nbsp;person, or manners. The brown skin of the New Zealander varies innbsp;its depth of colour in different individuals, and the constant wearing ofnbsp;clothes, and washing of hands and faces, render those who have beennbsp;brought up among Europeans many shades lighter than their countrymen. In their former savage state they were accustomed to anointnbsp;their bodies with oil and red ochre, but they have now many of themnbsp;assumed more cleanly and civilized habits. The custom of rubbing ornbsp;rather pressing noses, as an accompaniment to a salutation, existednbsp;among the New Zealanders, as it does among the widely dissimilar racenbsp;of people the Esquimaux.�

� The native village, or � pa-a � of the New Zealander is a square enclosure of fifteen or twenty acres, surrounded with a rude palisade, the posts of which are often surmounted with grotesque representations ofnbsp;landers, by killing their children. � Who are your gods?� said Mr. Hamlin. Thenbsp;chief replied, � The spirits of our chiefs who have died and become gods ; and if it benbsp;true,� continued he, � that they are gone to the place of fire for not believing, do notnbsp;pray that they may be released ; let them remain and bum, as a payment for their bitingnbsp;us.� What a shocking instance of their ignorance and malevolence ! But it explainsnbsp;the native character, before conversion, very forcibly.

the human face and form, carved out of the wood, and painted with red ochre and pipe-clay. Within the precincts of the village are a numbernbsp;of small tenements, constructed of Rapoo, a species of reed, neatlynbsp;bound together in bundles with shreds of the native flax, or the tendrilsnbsp;of the wild vine, and roofed with bundles of the myrtle, which aboundsnbsp;in New Zealand. The roof is usually too low to admit the owner tonbsp;stand upright in the hut ; in front is a small verandah supported uponnbsp;posts, which are frequently carved and ornamented. But at the missionnbsp;stations the native huts are of a very superior description, and constructed of wood, with tasteful gardens round them. The furniture ofnbsp;a New Zealander�s abode consists of a very small number of articles ;nbsp;an iron pot for cooking potatoes or kumeras, a calabash for water, andnbsp;a few woven mats on which the inmates repose, make up the inventorynbsp;of their utensils. In an inner room will be found the chief�s mostnbsp;valuable treasures ; his double-barrelled gun, with a supply of ammunition ; his pipes and tobacco, without which his existence would benbsp;intolerable, and a small chest containing one or two blankets, if he hasnbsp;been prudent enough to make such a provision for the winter. Here,nbsp;too, will be found the cherished blue surtout, with a gold-laced cap, andnbsp;trowsers and waistcoat to match, which he wears on Sundays or onnbsp;particular occasions, but he seldom can be induced to wear shoes ornbsp;boots. Their native dress is a mat woven of the fibre of the phormiumnbsp;tenax ; but since the introduction of English blankets, these are a verynbsp;favourite dress, worn over the shoulders. The wives and daughtersnbsp;of the chiefs have often a dignified and melancholy aspect, probablynbsp;from the hard work which females of all uncivilized nations have tonbsp;perform.�

� When the chiefs sell their lands, however large the payments, they divide the produce between all their relations and dependants, so thatnbsp;they are not themselves individually enriched to a great degree. Theirnbsp;wants are now much increased, and at the same time they are imbibingnbsp;a love of money, which has been effected by the colonization of theirnbsp;country. In former times, their flax-fields, their potatoes, and kumeras,nbsp;their fishing-tackle, and their exhaustless resource of fern-root, renderednbsp;them independent of foreigners ; but now they must have their tobacconbsp;and gunpowder, their blankets and clothing, their iron-pots, agriculturalnbsp;implements, knives, and muskets, and Manchester goods.* Therenbsp;exists nowhere on the face of the globe a race of beings more suscep-

? It has been estimated by the cashier of the bank at Port Nicholson, that the natives of New Zealand collectively possess at least �150.000 in specie, but in general the wealthnbsp;of the chiefs is very limited.

tible of improvement, if placed under a wise and truly good government, able to instruct, protect, and controul them.*

� Come^ behold the ivories of the LordHe maleeth wars to cease unto the end of ilte earth ; he bredketh the bow^ and cutteth the spear in sunderThe Lord of Hostsnbsp;is with us: the God of Jacob is our refuged Psalm xlvi. 8, 9, 11.

In the case of the New Zealand race, this portion of our description of them is so interwoven with that of their � Habits and Manners,� thatnbsp;we refer our readers to the preceding section, for an account of theirnbsp;superstitions.

� Blessed is the people that know tlwjoyfvl sound : they shall walk^ O Lord^ in the light of thy countenance.��'* Psalm Ixxxix. 15.

� Pom are called upion to build a temple for God in a place where no stone had been quarried^ no timber cut., nor a spit of the foundation dug,*' See Mr. Marsden�s Instructions to the first missionary settlers in New Zealand.

The first attempt at missionary exertions in behalf of the savage race inhabiting the islands of New Zealand, was made by the Rev. Samuelnbsp;Marsden, senior chaplain of the colony of New South Wales, who resided at Paramatta, in that country ; and who, in order to acquaint himself accurately with their character, had a few New Zealanders to hvenbsp;with him. His first desire to benefit this interesting race, was causednbsp;by meeting two of their chiefs at Norfolk Island, who had been broughtnbsp;there by the English governor that they might teach the English prisoners to prepare the New Zealand flax. This was twenty years beforenbsp;Mr. Marsden effected any thing towards benefitting the New Zealanders.

In the year 1814, Mr. Marsden was authorized by the committee of the Church Missionary Society in England, to act on their behalf, innbsp;reference to New Zealand. His first step, therefore, in furtherance ofnbsp;the Society�s views, was to purchase a brig, and in this vessel (namednbsp;the Active) he made his first missionary voyage from Port Jackson tonbsp;the Bay of Islands, in the month of December of that year, accompanied by three English settlers, competent to act as teachers andnbsp;school-masters,�one of them being a carpenter, and the others agricul-

turists. They all three took their wives and families with them, and two sawyers, a blacksmith, and a New South Wales settler accompaniednbsp;them : also eight New Zealanders, five of whom were chiefs, and whonbsp;had been treated kindly for several years previously, by Mr. Marsden atnbsp;Paramatta. They also took some seed-wheat, three horses, some poultry, and a few cows and sheep ; the first of the kind that had ever beennbsp;introduced into the island. The whole account of this first visit of Mr.nbsp;Marsden, and location of the missionaries, is extremely interesting, andnbsp;may be read at length in the Missionary Register for 1816, pp. 459�nbsp;471. It relates how Mr. Marsden assisted in making peace betweennbsp;two hostile tribes, explained to them General Macquarie�s letter of instruction to masters of vessels, who might in future touch at any ofnbsp;their harbours for provisions ; and how he obtained a friendly promisenbsp;from the Bay of Islands� chiefs, that they would no more ill-treat thenbsp;English visiting their shores. The natives showed much cordiality andnbsp;good feeling towards the settlers, and were rejoiced to see their relatives brought back safely to them by Mr. Marsden. One of the Newnbsp;Zealanders who returned to his own country in this first expedition ofnbsp;the Active in 1814-15, was a youth named Mowhee, who had imbibednbsp;some notions of Christianity. He afterwards went to England, wherenbsp;he died, placing his firm trust and hope in his Saviour, for pardon andnbsp;salvation.* He had been instructed for some time at Paramatta, bynbsp;Mr. Kendall, one of the three first missionary catechists to New Zealand ; and almost his last dying words were, � Tell Mr. KendaU, I nevernbsp;forgot his instructions.�

The first transaction of Messrs. Kendall, Hall, and King, the catechists, was to purchase (under Mr. Marsden�s directions) 200 acres of land at Ranghee Hoo, in the Bay of Islands. It has been before statednbsp;that twelve axes were given to the friendly chiefs for this land, in payment, and that the deed of assignment drawn up between them and thenbsp;catechists was signed by the principal chief, drawing a fac-simile of thenbsp;lines and marks tattooed upon his own face. The whole party of Eng-hsh settlers with children and servants, who were located at Rangheenbsp;Hoo in 1815, were twenty-five in number ; and they commenced building and fencing in wooden dwellings, and storehouses for provisions, innbsp;which work they were assisted willingly by the natives, who, thoughnbsp;prying and curious, and sometimes prone to pilfer and be troublesome,nbsp;were yet friendly and kind ; and once when Mr. Kendall was incom-

* His friends in England wrote ;�� He has left his earthly remains with us in this land, hut his soul is with his Lord, and the first fruits of New Zealand have doubtlessnbsp;been gathered into the garner of heaven, a pledge of that abundant harvest which willnbsp;one day be there safely housed for ever !�

moded and attacked by some troublesome English sailors belonging to a whaling ship, a hundred of the natives armed, came to the protectionnbsp;of the missionaries�soon causing the angry mate and sailors to retirenbsp;to their vessel. During the first year of the mission, Mr. Kendallnbsp;writes�� Our settlement is crowded with visitors from distant parts ofnbsp;the island ; and they have brought us potatoes enough to supply usnbsp;and our families for some months.� A little while after, he writesnbsp;again : � It is truly gratifying to see the friendly manner in which thenbsp;natives made peace with Captain Parker, who had injured them somenbsp;time before. The natives will kneel down with us when we assemblenbsp;on the Lord�s day, or when we meet for prayer with our famihes. Inbsp;can speak to them as yet in their own tongue but very imperfectly ;nbsp;but they listen to me with respect and attention, when I attempt to tellnbsp;them of God the Creator of the world, and of the great love of Jesusnbsp;Christ for mankind.� Notwithstanding these fair prospects, the settlersnbsp;at this early stage of the mission, had very great difficulties to encounter.nbsp;The imsettled and warhke disposition of the natives, and their intrudingnbsp;curiosity, and thievish habits, gave them at times much annoyance andnbsp;uneasiness. They frequently were pained to witness the conquerednbsp;slain and devoured by the conquering parties, while at the same timenbsp;their ears were assailed by the frightful sounds of the war-song accompanying the dance. Notwithstanding the cruelties they inflicted uponnbsp;each other, they never once attempted to injure the missionaries, nornbsp;any of their families ; and many are the instances of noble generositynbsp;they manifested towards their benefactors. They were particularlynbsp;grateful for any attention, when they were sick ; and though they werenbsp;generally tabooed when they were very ill, which was a means of preventing any but the priests and their nearest relative coming near them,nbsp;yet their friends seldom denied the visits of the settlers and teachers,nbsp;and they were even often sent for to attend the sick and the dying.*

In 1816, an institution was formed by the Church Missionary Society (by the suggestion of the Rev. Samuel Marsden) at Paramatta, for thenbsp;instruction of the sons of chiefs and other New Zealc-nders, in the simplenbsp;and useful arts, as spinning and weaving their native flax ; manufacturing it into twine and cordage ; blacksmith�s work, and agriculture.nbsp;Mr. M. began with four young New Zealanders, and the institutionnbsp;likewise served as a refuge for such chiefs as visited New South Walesnbsp;from time to time, in the brig Active. These visits tended to enlargenbsp;their ideas, remove their prejudices, and give them a thirst for usefulnbsp;knowledge.

In the Report of the Church Missionary Society for 1817, the following notices occur : � Mr. Kendall actively employs himself in visiting the surrounding chiefs, and applying to their benefit his early knowledgenbsp;of farming. �August 18th. (he says), I went up the river about twelvenbsp;miles, to sow some wheat for my friends Shunghee and Tairee. Augustnbsp;21st, I went up the river to sow some wheat for my friend Shourackie.nbsp;August 28th. I went up the river to sow some wheat for my friendsnbsp;Widouah, Tahoa, and Rewa.� � Such notices, (adds the Report) speaknbsp;volumes in the ear of the Christian Philosopher ; and will be read withnbsp;gratitude by future generations of New Zealanders, when our holynbsp;religion shall have rendered their country, by the charities and energiesnbsp;which it awakens, a great and powerful nation.�

In the year 1817, fifty more acres of land were purchased by settlers on which was formed the new station of Wytanghee. Soon after Mr.nbsp;Hall was settled here, the Chief Warrackie died, and when his relationsnbsp;all withdrew themselves according to their custom to cry and lament fornbsp;the deceased, a party of strange natives entered the settlement, and bynbsp;their artful man�uvres succeeded in robbing Mr. Hall of his tools andnbsp;much of his property. Shunghee, a powerful Chief (of whom frequentnbsp;mention is made in the early New Zealand History), repaired with anbsp;party of his people to the residence of the robbers, and told them hownbsp;kindly he and Duaterra and several others had heen treated by thenbsp;Enghsh at Port Jackson, and also how white men were punished fornbsp;theft, and declared that it was his intention to take away and destroynbsp;the property of as many as had been guilty. Warrackie�s son also sentnbsp;a party of his men to protect Mr. Hall�s settlement. It was customarynbsp;with the Missionaries on their first settling in New Zealand, to erect anbsp;flag at their station upon the Sabbath-day, and this was the sign fornbsp;many distant tribes of natives to desist from work, or from war ; indeed,nbsp;they seem to have shewn at a very early period of the Mission, a decidednbsp;respect and honour for the Sabbath, which the Missionaries told themnbsp;was set apart by them in honour of the quot; Atua nue,� the Great Jehovah.*nbsp;Mr. HeJI very soon acquired a knowledge of the native language, fromnbsp;his having so many New Zealanders in his employ, assisting to buildnbsp;houses, make fences, amp;c. Mr. Kendall, in 1817, had prepared a spelling-book for the Natives, which was sent to Sydney to be printed.

* In the Missionary Register is an interesting anecdote of the chief Duaterra preparing a pulpit and seats, and covering them with native cloth, in order that Mr. Marsden might perform Divine service (as at Paramatta) upon the first Sunday after his arrivalnbsp;in New Zealand, in 1814. This he did quite of his own accord, and unexpectedly tonbsp;Mr. Marsden, who was much pleased at this little mark of attention.

This year Shunghee sent two of his sons to reside with the Missionaries for instruction.

In 1818, the Rev. John Butler, his wife and two children, sailed from England to strengthen the New Zealand mission, with Messrs. F. Hallnbsp;and Kemp, catechists. Two chiefs, named Tooi and Teterree, returnednbsp;to New Zealand with them, who had been sent on a visit to England bynbsp;Mr. Marsden, at their own earnest request, and resided ten months innbsp;this country, endearing themselves to all who took an interest in themnbsp;by their good conduct and apparently amiable dispositions. Theirnbsp;return became necessary, as this climate seemed considerably to affectnbsp;their health. As a specimen of the simple manner of expressing themselves of the New Zealanders, at this early period of the missions, wenbsp;subjoin a letter from the young chief Teeterree, who accompanied thenbsp;chief Tooi to England in 1818 ; � My dear friend Mr. Bickersteth, younbsp;very kind to me. Hope God will bless you. I go to-morrow. I hopenbsp;Jesus Christ will go along with me. O Englishman, how kind ! Whennbsp;I get home (to) my own country, I pray for Englishmen and Englishmen pray for me. I pray, Jesus Christ, every night, teach me readnbsp;the Book.� This year Mr. Kendall had seventy New Zealand childrennbsp;in his school, some of whom could read and write. By this time thenbsp;natives had begun to feel sensible of the advantages they had in thenbsp;establishment of the English amongst them ; many continually visitednbsp;the settlement from a distance of 200 miles. Mr. Marsden made yearlynbsp;voyages from New South Wales to New Zeidand ; and, in 1818, sentnbsp;the New Zealanders some fruit-trees of various kinds, which were foundnbsp;to answer admirably. He likewise sent a person to teach them to curenbsp;and salt their fish. In the school, at its first commencement, the girlsnbsp;were twice as many as the boys ; but when the natives became morenbsp;aware of the value and effects of education, they sent their boys in equalnbsp;numbers. Tlie regularity of their attendance depended much on thenbsp;supply of food at the disposal of the settlers.. During the first fournbsp;months Mr. Kendall�s journal states that they were extremely wild, andnbsp;he could scarcely hear them read, from the incessant singing, shouting,nbsp;and dancing of some of them ; but by patience and kindness he soonnbsp;effected a manifest improvement in their behaviour, and they learntnbsp;very quickly, when they could be brought to apply themselves to theirnbsp;books and slates. Their food was a handful of potatoes twice a-day,nbsp;which they cooked for themselves. Amongst them were several sonsnbsp;of chiefs ; and one of these (the son of the good chief Tippahee) wasnbsp;competent, after a few months, to act as assistant in the school. Thenbsp;girls under Mrs. Kemp and Mrs. Hall made their own garments, andnbsp;the boys during a part of the day were taught to make fences, dress,

and spin their flax, and do other useful work. Mr. Kendall continued diligently labouring to prepare elementary books ; and during the visitsnbsp;of the chiefs to England, the Rev. Professor Lee rendered his valuablenbsp;assistance in fixing the spelhng and construction of the New Zealandnbsp;language.

Shunghee, though extremely attached to the English, and desirous for the welfare of his people, yet was of an excessively ferocious and warlikenbsp;disposition. Under pretence of revenging some affront from a neighbouring tribe, he set out, in 1819, on a naval expedition to the Northnbsp;Cape, at the head of thirty canoes, containing eight hundred natives,nbsp;but when arrived at the Bay of Wangarooa, he entertained fears thatnbsp;strange natives might attack the missionary settlements, and he accordingly returned to his village, after giving up the expedition.

The Paramatta Institution for New Zealand chiefs prospered in 1818 �1819 ; and twenty-four natives had made considerable progress in thenbsp;art of agriculture, for which they showed great fondness. In 1819, a newnbsp;station was formed at Kiddee-Kiddee, in the Bay of Islands, 13,000nbsp;acres being bought of the chief Shunghee for forty-eight axes. Thisnbsp;year Mr. Marsden sent a quantity of cattle from New South Wales tonbsp;the settlements in New Zealand. At the end of this year, Mr. Kendallnbsp;writes : � On the part of the natives, there is no apparent obstacle tonbsp;our usefulness, except their wild unsettled turn of mind. It is verynbsp;encouraging to us that parents do not at all object to their childrennbsp;being instructed. When numbers of natives are about us, they arenbsp;often very troublesome, as the most friendly chiefs find it difficult tonbsp;keep their people under restraint. Their dispositions have been rousednbsp;by intercourse with Europeans ; and exerting themselves to procurenbsp;instruments of war and husbandry, they pursue the customs and traditions of their fathers with more avidity than ever. War is all theirnbsp;glory. Almost the whole of the men belonging to the Bay of Islandsnbsp;are now gone to battle. Although they show no disposition to injurenbsp;ns, yet, from their being in so unsettled and warlike a state, our situation among them is the more trying.� *

In 1820, two chiefs, Shunghee and Wykato visited England. The latter was then a young man, and could speak English pretty well,nbsp;having lived for some time with the missionaries in New Zealand ; butnbsp;Shunghee having lived mostly with his own tribe, and being upwards ofnbsp;forty years old, found a difficulty in acquiring our language. Theirnbsp;visit to England was rather detrimental to Shunghee than beneficial ;nbsp;for, by means of the numerous presents he received he was enabled, on

his return, to obtain from Port Jackson a great quantity of fire-arms and ammunition, so that his love of war and bloodshed increased, and thenbsp;wars among the natives caused great ditficulties to the missionaries fornbsp;many years, which nothing but the blessing of God upon their patientnbsp;and persevering exertions could have overcome ; but the Lord was verynbsp;merciful in giving them favour in the sight of these ferocious people,nbsp;for not so much as a hair of their heads was ever touched by thesenbsp;cannibals, who were continually at war with each other.

Mr. Marsden�s unwearied exertions were renewed in 1820, during his third visit to New Zealand, when he made several excursions fromnbsp;the Bay of Islands to the Western coasts, in order to become betternbsp;acquainted with the natives. On one occasion he travelled many hundrednbsp;miles alone, in the midst of the different tribes, but every where received from them the kindest attention. He spent nine months in laborious and incessant exertions to prepare the way for the reception of thenbsp;gospel among these rude tribes, his long journeys being performednbsp;entirely on foot, amidst numerous privations, difficulties, and dangers.nbsp;Their wars at this time became more frequent, as they now possessednbsp;more provisions, for which they could obtain muskets and powder fromnbsp;the whaling-ships that visited their shores. Notwithstanding thesenbsp;troubles and difficulties the mission continued gradually to progress,nbsp;and the missionaries were sometimes very successful in obtaining peacenbsp;between the hostile tribes. Korro-Korro, the brother of Tooi, was anbsp;brave and sensible chief, and the rival of the warlike Shunghee ; he nownbsp;wished for peace, and several other chiefs expressed the same desire,nbsp;but found it a difficult matter to cease from fighting, as they had nonbsp;regular government among themselves, and every fresh offence wasnbsp;punished by an appeal to the war-club and musket, or by plunderingnbsp;each other�s potatoe-grounds. During Mr. Marsden�s excursions innbsp;the island, in 1821-2, he was accompanied by a chief named Timma-rangha, who constantly exhorted his countrymen to leave olf fighting,nbsp;and keep the sacred day of the Christians ; and told them that the Godnbsp;of the Englishman was also the God of the New Zealander.

In 1822, the Rev. Henry Williams and Mrs. Williams joined the Rev. J. Butler in the mission, also Mr. George Clarke, catechist. Whilenbsp;the desolating scenes of war and cannibalism were passing before thenbsp;eyes of the missionaries, the earth was abundantly yielding her produce,nbsp;and amply repaying their toil and exertions, thus manifesting to thenbsp;natives the rewards of peaceful labour. This year the settlers hadnbsp;reaped wheat and barley enough for their own consumption ; theirnbsp;gardens were well filled with fruit, and their vines and hops doing well.nbsp;But the scenes of cruelty and cannibalism they were often forced to

witness were most distressing to their feelings. They always preserved a perfect neutrality with regard to the natives, only giving them theirnbsp;advice when occasion olfered, and promoting peace and a desire for thenbsp;blessings of Christianity, by their own steady and persevering example.nbsp;Thus things went on for some years. The number of children in thenbsp;schools were greatly increased, and the natives who worked for thenbsp;missionaries became gradually more tractable and orderly. Their habitsnbsp;of pilfering ceased, and greater numbers would join the settlers at publicnbsp;worship. Mr. Marsden writes, in 1823, during his fourth visit to Newnbsp;Zealand :�� The natives are much improved in manners and appearancenbsp;since my last visit. The children are as fine subjects to work upon asnbsp;anv in the known world. Several of the natives can now repeat somenbsp;hymns and the Lord�s prayer, in their own language. Since the missionnbsp;began, nine years ago, not one European has received any injury fromnbsp;the natives ; and vessels can now enter the Bay of Islands without anynbsp;fear of interruption.�

In 1824, Mr. Shepherd, one of the settlers, began to translate the gospels, and composed some tracts and hymns in the New Zealand language. There were now about fifty natives at Mr. Butler�s settlementnbsp;who could read their own language, and sing hymns, and repeat somenbsp;prayers in the same. A house had been built for Shunghee, withnbsp;which he was much pleased ; he had become very friendly to the settlersnbsp;and missionaries, and always stood up in their defence when any of thenbsp;natives were inclined to be troublesome.

These improvements in the natives were very encouraging. In 1824, Mr. H. Williams writes:�� When I consider the natives, their noblenbsp;and dignified appearance, their pertinent remarks and questions, theirnbsp;obliging disposition, with the high sense of honour they possess, Inbsp;cannot but view them as a people of great interest, and of extraordinary energy of character, and one which our Almighty Father willnbsp;ere long adopt for his own. They receive instruction gladly, andnbsp;aU have the greatest confidence in us.� In 1825, a young man died,nbsp;named Wattoo, inquiring, �What must I do to be saved?� Andnbsp;this year was also remarkable for the first native baptism,�that of anbsp;New Zealand chief, who gave full and decided proof of a firm and truenbsp;faith in his Saviour. Some of his words in his last illness show thenbsp;simplicity and energy of the native mind : � 1 have no fear of death,�nbsp;said he, � none in the least ; I shall go and sit above the sky with Jesusnbsp;Christ my Saviour, Oh ! my heart is very, very full of light, becausenbsp;of my belief in Jehovah and Jesus Christ. I have prayed to God, andnbsp;my heart is full of light. I have nothing to give him, only I believe henbsp;is the true God, and in Jesus Christ.� He was surrounded on his

death-bed by natives who would gladly have drawn him back to heathenism ; but in the presence of them all he declared boldly the darkness which once hung over him, and the sure and certain hope he now possessed of being soon in glory. He was baptized by the name ofnbsp;� Christian Rangi.�

In 1826 the prospects of the mission were daily brightening, and the natives were anxious for the personal visits of the missionaries. � Comenbsp;oftener,� they said, � You wait so long before your return that we havenbsp;forgotten what you have told us before.� The power and influence ofnbsp;the Wicked One now began to give way, they ceased to neglect theirnbsp;sick, and some even gave up the taboo system. The missionaries writenbsp;this year, � Shunghee�s youngest daughter promises to be a blessing tonbsp;her country-women. There is a communicative disposition among thenbsp;New Zealand children : all that we say or do spreads through the tribesnbsp;by means of the native children who live at our settlements. The natives now treat us with much respect and attention.�

The Wesleyan Missionary Society had established stations on the north-western coasts of the island in 1821, and up to 1825 theynbsp;had made some progress, through many hard trials and difficulties,nbsp;but their mission was relinquished for a time in 1827, owing tonbsp;their premises being robbed and destroyed by a party of natives duringnbsp;the absence of Shunghee, under whose protection they had placednbsp;themselves. None of the missionaries or their families were personallynbsp;injured. As they thought it better not to resist the robbers, they allnbsp;left the station ; and on their way to the Church missionary stationnbsp;their lives were mercifully preserved from a strong party of armed andnbsp;ferocious warriors, who they met on their road. The missionaries hadnbsp;one friendly chief with them, and upon meeting the enemy�s army thisnbsp;chief spoke a few words to the leaders who marched in front, to tellnbsp;them who the English were. The principal warriors immediately stoodnbsp;still, spoke kindly to the missionaries, and desired their whole party,nbsp;women, children and all, to sit or kneel down close together upon thenbsp;ground ; their chiefs then formed a circle round them until all thenbsp;armed natives had passed on ; thus they were protected from the slightest injury, which could hardly have been expected, as the natives whennbsp;marching to battle are in a very excited state, and their own chiefs cannbsp;with difficulty restrain them. They pursued this kindly feeling evennbsp;still further, for they sent one of their chiefs to accompany the missionaries on their road, lest they should be annoyed by stragglers ! Thusnbsp;did the Lord rule over the hearts of these savages, for the safety of hisnbsp;faithful servants. Another young native died this year in the faith andnbsp;hope of the Gospel.

Tlie Rev. S. Marsden writes in 1828: � The missionaries are now able to proclaim fluently in the native language, the unsearchable richesnbsp;of Christ. There is a brighter prospect among the natives than wenbsp;have ever yet seen,�Shunghee and Wareumu, the principal warlikenbsp;chiefs of the River Thames, are now no more ; and Rewa, the mostnbsp;powerful one left, seems inclined to peace. The natives shew us muchnbsp;civility, and are pressingly solicitous to be visited, and to have the wordnbsp;of truth declared to them. God has been'very gracious to his faithfulnbsp;labourers in New Zealand, and we may expect his farther blessing.nbsp;During the thirteen years since the first mission was established, nonbsp;man, woman, or child of those sent to labour in this vineyard havenbsp;died, or had a bone broken, although living in the midst of cannibals.�

This year, the Rev. H. Wilhams writes, � Our hands are much tied for want of missionaries. When the natives shall hear the Gospel regularly, we may expect to see the fruit of it as abundant in this land as innbsp;any other. Mr. Davis paid a yisit to New South Wales this year, andnbsp;carried through the press in that colony the first three chapters of Genesis, the twentieth of Exodus, the fifth of Matthew, the first of John,nbsp;and some hymns in the New Zealand language. The missionariesnbsp;write, � The natives are much pleased with their new books. We frequently now hear them praying by themselves, and in their own words.nbsp;This year there were 111 native children in the schools.�

In 1829, blankets were sent out by the English, and received by the natives as barter for their wheat, instead of the muskets and powder,nbsp;the chief articles of exchange coveted by them. There were by thisnbsp;time ninety-five head of cattle at the settlements. The Wesleyan mission had been renewed at Wajigarooa. The chiefs on both sides thenbsp;island were now united in peace : the Gospel began to influence manynbsp;of them, and they were rapidly improving in civilization. Mr. Marsdennbsp;had now twenty New Zealanders with him at Paramatta, and such wasnbsp;their appreciation of the blessings resulting from missionary labour thatnbsp;he was visited by a chief from the southern extremity of the island, nearnbsp;Cooke�s Straits, desiring that a missionary might be sent to his part ofnbsp;the country. In 1829, the children in the schools amounted to 170.nbsp;The translation of the Liturgy was now completed. The first chapelnbsp;and school-house was finished, and the natives assembled on Sundaysnbsp;for divine worship in number about one hundred. Mr. Davis writesnbsp;this year, � Our prospects are bright, but our trials are not few, as wenbsp;have a powerful enemy to contend against. The minds of many herenbsp;are well stored with scriptural knowledge, and we have several nativesnbsp;employed to teach others.�

tive servants at the settlement, and that of the chief Taiwanga and his family. The letter of Taiwanga to the missionaries on the occasion isnbsp;short and very characteristic ; it runs as follows : '� Mr. Davis andnbsp;Mother Davis, Big Mr. Williams and Mother Big Mr. Wilhams ; Brother and Mother Brother ;* Mr. Fairburn and Mother Fairburn. Herenbsp;I am thinking of the day when my sons shall be baptized. I have castnbsp;off my native ideas of rectitude, and my native thoughts. Here I sitnbsp;thinking and untying the rope of the Devil, and it is shaken, that it maynbsp;fall off. Jesus Christ perhaps is near to see my evils, and to look intonbsp;the hearts of men. It is well perhaps that the heart should grieve innbsp;the morning, in the evening, and at night, that every sin may be blottednbsp;out.� At this time many of the native domestics at the settlements became deeply impressed with Divine truth, and frequently united together in prayer among themselves. Mr. Fairbum was ill one day, andnbsp;one of his servants having obtained leave to join and see his master, henbsp;wept for some time on entering the room, and then asked if he mightnbsp;pray ; and kneeling down by his bed, he uttered a most affectionatenbsp;prayer that God would be pleased to restore his master to health. Thenbsp;natural disposition of Taiwanga was extremely turbulent, and oftennbsp;gave him much sorrow after he was baptized. He said one day, � Inbsp;am an obstinate child, and God is now whipping me.� In the yearnbsp;1830, Rev. W. Yate, paid a visit to New South Wales, and broughtnbsp;back a printing press to New Zealand, and it is remarkable that thenbsp;same year the first water-mill was erected in the Island, both thesenbsp;were instruments of great good. It was chiefly however, at the northnbsp;and east parts of the island, the good work under God seemed to prosper. At other parts there yet remained the great mass of the nativesnbsp;unvisited, by the Christian Missionary, and there might on one sidenbsp;the island be heard the din and confusion of a savage and militarynbsp;captain, where many were weeping and cutting themselves for the lossnbsp;of their friends, while on the other, might be seen, the natives assembling for public worship, clean and orderly, and decently clothed,nbsp;(many of them in European attire.) This year, (1830) a new stationnbsp;called Waimate was formed, and soon after Mr. Pierce, another settler,nbsp;joined the Mission;�in one of his first letters home, he observes, � I havenbsp;frequently heard the Christian natives at mid-night, praying and singingnbsp;praises to their Creator and Redeemer.�

In 1831, two female slaves became true and sincere converts. Of one of these, Mr. Davis writes�� In the case of this poor girl, Christians may see a faithful God dealing in the same gracious manner with

the soul of a New Zealander, as with the soul of a privileged English Christian, and those gracious dealings having the same precious effects.� *

The Missionaries relate, that a native was one day boasting of his own goodness, and how strictly he kept the Sabbath day : Titore thenbsp;chief, who happened to be present at the time observed, � That is notnbsp;the believing the teachers mean ! � Fifteen baptisms occurred about thisnbsp;time at Paihia. � To our certain knowledge,� say the Missionaries innbsp;1831, �many of the native families have now regular morning andnbsp;evening prayers at their homes.�

In 1833, the whole of the Gospels of St. Matthew, and St. John, the Acts, the Epistles to the Romans and Corinthians, with four catechisms and numerous hymns, were completed in the native language.nbsp;There were now, in the four Church Missionary settlements, 320 Newnbsp;Zealanders under regular instructions in reading, writing, and arithmetic, besides building, carpentering, and other trades. There werenbsp;three substantial brick chapels, each holding a congregation of fromnbsp;two to three hundred natives. A very striking change had taken placenbsp;in regard to the veracity and honesty of the people, the subjugationnbsp;of their temper, the tenderness of their conscience, and their anxietynbsp;for the spiritual welfare of others.f The habits of drunkenness, andnbsp;sin of the crews of the whalers, and other British vessels frequentingnbsp;the New Zealand shores however, stiH presented a formidable hindrancenbsp;to the introduction of Christianity into New Zealand in the Missionarynbsp;Register we find Captain Jacob�s testimony to the good results of missionary labour in these islands. He speaks of the schools in the highestnbsp;terms, and the proficiency of the scholars, both adults and children, also,nbsp;of the roads the native chiefs were cutting to bring the people togethernbsp;under instruction�and relates that the converted chiefs, David andnbsp;Ripi, and others, assemble their people regularly for daily morningnbsp;prayers,�and in some of the villages had established a system ofnbsp;mutual instruction by circulating classes, which were successfully conducted, entirely by natives.�

Notwithstanding these fair prospects at the Missionary stations, dreadful were their wars and fightings in the interior, and Rev. H.nbsp;Wilhams in 1833, was absent for nine weeks making fruitless attemptsnbsp;to reconcile the hostile parties, and induce the chiefs to make peace

* See � Missionary Register� for 1831, p. 342, nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid, for 1833, p. 61.

� See � Letter from Capt. W. Jacob, of the East India Company�s service, to the Secretary of the Church Missionary Society�s Committee in New South Wales,�nbsp;March, 1833.

with each other. A few months later in the same year the Missionaries went up the river Thames to look for a convenient site for a new station,nbsp;when coming to a halt in the evening, they assembled for public prayernbsp;and singing, and to their astonishment found that those natives whonbsp;had joined them on the spot, were able correctly to repeat the responses,nbsp;as the voice of one man. Upon enquiry, it was found, that threenbsp;native boys from one of the Mission settlements, had for some timenbsp;been giving them instruction. As a specimen of the figurative modenbsp;of speech often used by these converted heathens, a New Zealandnbsp;woman once said to her Missionary�� When I get upon the risingnbsp;ground, and obtain a sight of the suburbs of the place in the distance,nbsp;it enlightens my heart.� By the �rising ground,� she means the ordinancenbsp;of public worship, in the use of which she sometimes had a distant viewnbsp;of the suburbs of the heavenly world.* This year the infant-school systemnbsp;was introduced into New Zealand, and found most beneficial in counteracting the ferocity of the native character, which was imbibed by childrennbsp;from their parents at a very early age. Much opposition to the truth wasnbsp;at this time stirred up by the European crews of whalers and other vessels, who told the natives the Missionaries only wanted to get possessionnbsp;of their land. Notwithstanding this the Missions prospered, and thenbsp;translation of the Scriptures was proceeding rapidly. The languagenbsp;was ascertained to be rich and copious�having no gutturals, and everynbsp;word ending with a vowel, gave it a very soft and harmonious sound.nbsp;In 1833, Mr. Busby was sent to New Zealand by the Government ofnbsp;New South Wales, to act as political agent, or magistrate, On hisnbsp;arrival, he presented the people, on the part of England, with a nationalnbsp;flag ; vessels bearing these colours, would no longer be liable to seizure,nbsp;but would be permitted to trade, as other foreign vessels are, in everynbsp;British Port.-t-

A missionary, writing in 1834, observes :�� The natives of New Zealand entertain a very high respect for the Bible, as the word of God. They do not ask, � What does Mr. Clarke say ?� � What does Mr.nbsp;Hamlin say ?� but � What does God say ?� When they receive copiesnbsp;of what has been already translated, they invariably take them home tonbsp;their families, and read them morning, noon, and night. I have gonenbsp;into a native village, and seen half a dozen assembled reading the Scriptures, deliberating upon them, and asking one another pertinent questions. Formerly they only delighted in dancing, singing the war-song,

* In the � Missionary Register� for 1834, p. 4fi'2, may be seen some most interesting letters of native converts, candidates for admission to the Sacraments.

and relating their idle tales ; but now they say they derive more pleasure from reading the Scriptures than from any of these amusements.� A chief, writing to his missionary then on a visit to Port Jackson,nbsp;writes : � Mr. Hamhn says the Word of God will be a lamp to our feetnbsp;and a lantern to our path ; but I say, God must first light it up. Wenbsp;are not able to understand it ; our hearts are fooled by sin.�

To the four stations of Tepuna, Keri-Keri, Paihia, and Waimate (all in the Bay of Islands district), was now added a fifth, that of Kaitaia,nbsp;forty miles to the north-west of Waimate; and soon after (in 1834)nbsp;that of Puriri, on the south banks of the river Thames. Mr. Fairburnnbsp;was one day talking to the principal chief in these parts, and dwellingnbsp;on the state of New Zealand, and the many years missionaries hadnbsp;been labouring among them, and the little effect it had had, in comparison of the people of Tahiti, Tongataboo, amp;c. � True,� replied thenbsp;chief ; � but why did you remain at the Bay of Islands so many years ?nbsp;was your love only to them ? Had some of you come to live among usnbsp;years ago, you would, by your presence, have prevented the Ngapuhinbsp;tribe from destroying us.� The missionary remarks, he felt the truthnbsp;and force of this observation ; and adds, � If there were twenty disposable missionaries in the land, free of incumbrance, they would find anbsp;field amply sufficient to bring into action all their energies. As Mosesnbsp;said to the Israelites, � Behold, the Lord thy God has set the land before thee, go up and possess it.� The same year Mr. Fairburn�s Journal states,�� The scattered state of the natives, the dense forests, andnbsp;the almost impassable swamps, make travelling in New Zealand exceedingly laborious. The people, though not far removed from the savagenbsp;barbarity connected with cannibalism, are capable of amazing improvement, though as yet their temporal condition is deplorably wretched.nbsp;But, praised be the Lord! a great and glorious work is going onnbsp;amongst them. Their regular attendance on the ordinances of religionnbsp;as means of grace, their anxiety about their salvation, their observancenbsp;of the Lord�-day, and their consistency and decorum in the house ofnbsp;God, leave no doubt on our minds as to their sincerity.*

In the year 1835 the translation of the whole New Testament into the New Zealand language was completed, and the British and Foreignnbsp;Bible Society engaged to defray the expense of printing 2000 copies.nbsp;It had been chiefly effected by the Rev. W. Williams and the Rev. W,nbsp;Yate, greatly assisted by Messrs. Shepherd and Puckey, catechists, thenbsp;latter of whom had acquired a very perfect knowledge of the language,nbsp;having resided in New Zealand from the time he was nine years old,

Two more stations were this year added, to the south of the river Thames, viz. Tauranga and Matamata. The natives here still showednbsp;evidence of the cruel superstitions under which Satan had long heldnbsp;them in bondage, and were at first a great source of trouble and anxietynbsp;to the missionaries ; but those who have the opportunity of consultingnbsp;the original accounts of the progress of this mission, as published in thenbsp;� Missionary Register� and � Church Missionary Record,� will be ablenbsp;to see how wonderfully the Lord brought them safely through all theirnbsp;distressing trials and difficulties.

In 1836, there were in connection with the Church Missionary Society in New Zealand, 6 missionaries, 23 catechists, 1 printer, 16 native assistants, and 24 female assistants and teachers. There were 1530 attendantsnbsp;on public worship throughout the stations, 64 communicants, and 31 smallnbsp;schools, containing on the average 650 scholars, both youths and adults.nbsp;Upon the arrival, at this time, of an increased number of labourers tonbsp;New Zealand, one of the chiefs remarked, � Now that the missionariesnbsp;are coming, we shall for the first time become a people ! Other Europeans stay for a time only, but these will continue with us.� This yearnbsp;a frightful massacre of a native girl was perpetrated by a party of thenbsp;enemy, who attacked the settlement at Matamata. The chief who hadnbsp;thus lost his child, of whom he was very fond, thus expressed himselfnbsp;to the assembled company after her funeral : � There lies my child ;nbsp;she has been murdered as a payment for your bad conduct. But donbsp;not you rise to seek a payment for her ; God will do that. Let this benbsp;the finishing of the war with Rotorua. Now let peace be made. Mynbsp;heart is not dark for Tarore ; but for you. You urged teachers tonbsp;come to you : they came, and now you are driving them away. Younbsp;are crying for my girl, I am crying for you�for myself�for all of us.nbsp;Perhaps this murder is a sign of God�s anger towards us for our sins.nbsp;Turn to Him. Believe, or you will all perish.�

� Can I doubt,� adds the missionary who wrote this touching history, � who it is that has given calmness, resignation, and peace to this poor native ? It was not insensibility on the part of Ngakuku, for hisnbsp;feelings are naturally keen ; it was not indifference towards his family,nbsp;for he was fondly attached to his child. No ! it was the manifestationnbsp;of His power, who distinctly whispers to his children, � It is I, be notnbsp;afraid ; peace, be still.� � *

In 1837, Mr. Marsden paid his seventh visit to the island, and was much gratified at the progress towards civilization the New Zealandersnbsp;had been making. He writes to the committee of the Church Mis

sionary Society : � I met with numbers wherever I went, who were anxious after the knowledge of God. The Church service has beennbsp;translated into the native language, with the Church Catechism, somenbsp;hymns, and other useful pieces. They are all fond of reading, and therenbsp;are many able to read who never had an opportunity of attending thenbsp;schools ; they teach one another in all parts of the country. Thenbsp;schools and church are well attended, and the greatest order is observednbsp;among all classes. At the Bay of Islands a number of Europeans havenbsp;settled along with the natives ; several of them keep public-houses, andnbsp;encourage every kind of crime ;�there being no laws, judges, or magistrates, to restrain them : so that here Satan maintains his dominionnbsp;without molestation. Some civilized government must take New Zealandnbsp;under its protection, or the most dreadful evils will be committed bynbsp;runaway convicts, sailors, and publicans.�

During this visit of Mr. Marsden to New Zealand, a chief wrote him a letter, in which he forcibly set forth the want they had of laws tonbsp;settle their differences respecting their properties, and the depredationsnbsp;committed on them ; respecting marriage, and respecting their quarrelsnbsp;and fightings.* One of the missionaries thus writes respecting thisnbsp;visit of Mr. Marsden to New Zealand in 1837 : � We are aU muchnbsp;rejoiced to see this venerable friend, who has come to visit us in thenbsp;infirmity of his age. He is now seventy-two. It is evident he hasnbsp;grown in spirituality of mind as he has grown in grace. The nativesnbsp;looked upon his grey hairs, and expressed their admiration of his lovenbsp;for them ; they came party after party to see him, and, had his staynbsp;been further prolonged, the whole tribes of the Rurawa would havenbsp;heen gathered together. His last discourse to them was attentivelynbsp;hstened to by an assembly of three hundred natives. When upon deck,nbsp;ready for his return to New South Wales, he spoke to us of almost allnbsp;his old friends having preceded him to the eternal world�Romaine,nbsp;Scott, Atkinson, Robinson, Buchanan, Good, Thomason, Rowland Hill,nbsp;Legh Richmond, Simeon, and others. This mission, in its infant state,nbsp;was deeply indebted to him, for his advice, labours, and prayers, and hisnbsp;heart has now been cheered by witnessing the wonderful change whichnbsp;has taken place in the northern parts of the island, since he first landednbsp;upon it, in 1814, as the herald of mercy to its savage inhabitants.�

The Bishop of Australia paid his first v'sit to the mission of New Zealand in December, 1837. During his stay he confirmed many natives, and admitted to holy orders one of the catechists. He bore annbsp;honourable testimony to the efficiency of the mission, and to the ex-

* This interesting letter may be seen in the � Missionary Register� for 1838, p. 219. D2

treme caution with which the natives were admitted to baptism by the missionaries. There was much war going on about this time, notwithstanding the hearts of the missionaries were cheered by the mutualnbsp;reconciliation of two cruel and blood-thirsty chiefs, one of whom, namednbsp;Tawai, was converted through the instrumentality of one of his femalenbsp;slaves. After his conversion, he went to all the principal chiefs, tonbsp;assure them of his change of heart. One of the missionaries, speakingnbsp;of Tawai and another converted chief, thus writes :�� This morning Inbsp;witnessed one of the most interesting and novel sights I had ever seennbsp;in the land,�Nopero Pana and Mohi (Moses) Tawai (for years bitternbsp;enemies to each other) standing together in the school in the samenbsp;class, reading the first chapter of St. John�s gospel.� During the wholenbsp;of the year 1837, the new stations of Rotorua, Matamata, and Tauranganbsp;were the scene of a most dreadful warfare among the southern tribes,nbsp;owing to one murder perpetrated upon Christmas day, 1836. Thenbsp;stations were plundered and Rotorua station entirely destroyed, but thenbsp;missionaries escaped with their lives, and without personal injury, bynbsp;the intervention of friendly and Christian natives. The death of thenbsp;Rev. Samuel Marsden, the zealous and devoted friend of the mission tonbsp;New Zealand, occurred May 12, 1837, at the advanced age of seventy-three.

The Wesleyan Missionary Society had by this time greatly enlarged its Missions, they had now six stations, eight missionaries, and a printing press, and their congregations amounted to 800 in number. Innbsp;1838, a select committee of the House of Lords was appointed tonbsp;enquire into the state of New Zealand, with a view to prevent the evilsnbsp;resulting from the irregular conduct of British settlers and seamen ijinbsp;these islands. The Church Missionary Society�s printing-press atnbsp;Waimate this year, completed 5000 copies of the New Testament, andnbsp;the �Pilgrim�s Progress� was also printed in the New Zealand language. No Christian chiefs participated in the war, now still carriednbsp;on by the heathen chiefs, and when the war terminated, it was notnbsp;succeeded by any acts of cannibalism, and in the arrangements fornbsp;restitution, the ancient sanguinary principle of life for life, was exchanged for payment in land ! So far, writes one of the Missionaries,nbsp;has the Gospel humanized and blessed the northern districts of thenbsp;island ;�in the southern parts, where we had but a short time beennbsp;settled;�the desolating war of 1836-7 was followed by the most horriblenbsp;scenes of cannibalism, such as have never before been witnessed sincenbsp;our estabhshment in the island. Truly it may be said, when contrastingnbsp;these two districts, � See what man is without the Gospel!� and � Seenbsp;what he may become, by the grace of God, when under its influence.�

In the Missionary Register for 1839, p. 267, mention is made of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Hokianga, in New Zealand, and that anbsp;chapel was about to he built for him at Kororarika in the Bay of Islands,nbsp;a place where great darkness prevailed among the natives, and thenbsp;European traders, and grog-sellers. Nov. 23, 1838, occurred the firstnbsp;removal by death that had taken place since the Mission was establishednbsp;in 1815. At page 354 of the Missionary Register for 1839, is a mostnbsp;instructive and interesting account of the last illness and peaceful endnbsp;of Mrs. Wilson, wife of Mr. J. Wilson, catechist. Almost her lastnbsp;words, to her friends around her, were, � Live near to God, while innbsp;health�you may not feel the importance of this now, but on a bed ofnbsp;death, the trifles of this world will appear in a very different light.�nbsp;This same year died the Chief Ripi, who had been baptized by the namenbsp;of � Broughton,� some years before. His last words evince a strongnbsp;and simple faith, � My thought says, � leave thy heart in the hands ofnbsp;Jehovah.� If I die. I will in my dying moments praise Jehovah fornbsp;his great mercy. Yes, I know that he can subdue a heart of stone, fornbsp;he has subdued mine. It is my sincere desire, that my heart may benbsp;filled with love to him.�

About this time the Missionaries write, � Roman Catholicism is endeavouring to raise its head in New Zealand. The worshippers ofnbsp;images have set up their standard�it does not appear that more isnbsp;required from their converts than an acquiescence in modes of worship.nbsp;Their ceremony of baptism consists in suspending a piece of coppernbsp;from the neck�this they tell the natives wiU constitute them Christiansnbsp;till their death, and after their death, by presenting that piece of coppernbsp;at the gate of Heaven, it would procure for them admittance there !nbsp;1 trust the Spirit of the Lord will be at hand to lift up a standardnbsp;against this subtle enemy. The system of popery leaves the people,nbsp;as it found them, in gross ignorance and darkness, and under the influence of every sinful passion. The wiser natives see its fallacy toonbsp;well to embrace its doctrines.� *

The missionaries at New Zealand speak highly of the value put by the natives upon the Liturgy. They remark (in 1839) � they are a verynbsp;talkative people, and our church service is admirably suited to theirnbsp;spiritual wants. It being composed of sound scripture truths, it contains something both to lead, and to balance them, otherwise they wouldnbsp;so mix up their own parabolical way of speaking with their worship asnbsp;to mislead themselves into error. It is a pure substantial way of servingnbsp;God, which is set forth in our excellent Liturgy. The natives are na-

turally fond of display, and therefore a pure mode of worship is the more needful.�

The following letter is from a chief of Kaitaia to the Committee of the Church Missionary Society, wishing it not to deprive them of anynbsp;of their missionaries ;�

� Friends, if our candlesticks are taken away from before us, the sheep will he scattered. If there he two workmen on a piece of land,nbsp;it may be finished ; but if there be only one, it is unlikely. The wordnbsp;of God is growing up among those who have, as it were, been tied.nbsp;We have no desire at all that either of our teachers should go to another place.

In 1839, the mission numbered four ordained missionaries, twenty-five catechists and artisans, one surgeon, one farmer, and one printer. Itsnbsp;schools contained 1500 scholars, and its congregations consisted ofnbsp;2500 persons, of whom 180 were communicants. The Lord�s Day wasnbsp;religiously observed, not only at the missionary stations, but by manynbsp;of the natives far beyond their limits. The Roman Catholic bishop andnbsp;his clergy endeavoured to draw away the Christians, saying, � It wasnbsp;very bad to sell the word of God for food � (for the New Zealandersnbsp;had no other means of purchasing bibles of the missionaries but by paying food for their books). On the Sunday after this occurred, an oldnbsp;chief addressed the native congregation after divine service, asking themnbsp;if they would cast away the old word, and receive the new now broughtnbsp;to them ? The answer given was,�� No, the old word has not becomenbsp;sour to us, it is good ; let us hold fast the Word of God, and never letnbsp;it go.� A great number of native teachers were now employed withnbsp;their wives in conducting schools at a distance from the mission stations.nbsp;In the accounts from New Zealand in 1840, is the history of a mostnbsp;interesting chief, the head of a warlike tribe. In sickness, the head,nbsp;the whole person, and even the garments of a chief, are sacred ; and thenbsp;friends of Nyataru would not hear of his being baptized and joining thenbsp;missionaries, while he possessed his mat and blankets ; he thereforenbsp;consented to burn them, and he and his wife and children were all baptized. The conversations which took place on the occasion betweennbsp;him and the missionary, show the wonderful power of the grace of Godnbsp;in converting the heart. This man and his wife belonged to a tribenbsp;among whom the missionaries had resided but a very short time ; and

It was in 1840 that the worship and the law of God were established in the districts of Matamata and Tauranga, where the natives had carriednbsp;on such horrible and cruel war in 1837. Mr. Taylor in speaking of thenbsp;baptism of five natives at Tauranga, says, � One of the number was anbsp;noble-looking man, and a pleasing instance of the all-powerful effect ofnbsp;the Gospel. He had been a chief priest, and was more fuUy acquaintednbsp;with their rites and superstitions than any in these parts. When his pahnbsp;(or fortified village) was destroyed in the war, his house alone was left,nbsp;as none dared to meddle with the property of one whose incantationsnbsp;were considered so potent. He is now � clothed, and in his rightnbsp;mind,� meekly � sitting at the feet of Jesus.� He is going forth soonnbsp;as a teacher, and indeed he has such a character for strength of mindnbsp;and natural eloquence, that I should like to see him placed in ournbsp;English school, and prepared for the ministry,� f

In 1840, the Roman Catholic bishop used great eflforts to make proselytes among the natives. Among other things he told them that � the Protestant missionaries were only the pioneers of colonists whonbsp;would murder the natives and take away their land from them ; thatnbsp;the Testament was a stolen book, and that was the reason why the missionaries always carried it under their arm.�

The Rev. H. Williams writes, July 25th, 1840 : � Notwithstanding these efforts to oppose the truth, the mission is in a most healthy andnbsp;prosperous condition, and a larger measure of God�s blessing seemsnbsp;poured out upon New Zealand than upon any of the Society�s missions.nbsp;The population, as a body, profess Christianity ; the attendance at thenbsp;house of God is large,�the numbers of sincere inquirers daily increasing, which is partly evidenced by a desire to become possessed of biblesnbsp;and prayer-books far beyond our means of supplying them. The totalnbsp;number of those in our congregations, is not less than 27,300, and thesenbsp;are only such as meet in our mission-chapels : while at the out-stationsnbsp;there are many inquirers not coming under our immediate observation,nbsp;who meet together for worship with regularity. A New South Walesnbsp;chaplain, who published his account of a two-months�s visit to Newnbsp;Zealand, in the Missionary Register for 1841, observes that, during hisnbsp;stay at Port Nicholson he was invited into a native hut on the sabbathnbsp;day, where he found 300 natives assembled for divine worship. Henbsp;says that the responses were uttered aloud in excellent harmony by thenbsp;whole congregation, that they aU knelt during the prayers, fixing their

See � Missionary Register� for 1840, pp, 541�S45. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid, for 1841,p. 56,

eyes intently on their books,�every thing intimated that they were not performing an unmeaning ceremony, but were sincerely acknowledgingnbsp;their sins, and supplicating grace to lead a godly, righteous, and sobernbsp;life, to the praise and glory of God their Saviour.�

In the year 1841, Christian congregations had started up so extensively throughout the country, that in order to have the Church of England in its full integrity, the Right Rev. Dr. Selwyn was sent out asnbsp;bishop. It is worthy of remark that one of his first acts on reachingnbsp;the island of New Zealand was to appoint three of the Society�s missionaries to the important office of archdeacon. Such was an evidencenbsp;of his lordship�s appreciation of their character. We have already noticed the testimony which Bishop Selwyn bore to the prosperous statenbsp;of religion on his first arrival on the island,�and for brevity�s sake, wenbsp;abstain from adding to it here.*

The latest accounts from New Zealand (dated March 1845,) state, that a collision had taken place in the Bay of Islands between the natives and Her Majesty�s forces, and that Kororarika was burnt, and several killed and wounded on both sides. This melancholy conflict wasnbsp;occasioned by the chief Heki (who has always been averse to the Britishnbsp;having obtained the sovereignty of the islands) four times cutting downnbsp;the ensign, the British flag-staff. The utmost efforts have been usednbsp;by designing men, chiefly foreigners, to persuade the natives that wenbsp;have taken away their lands, in order to make them slaves, which m^ynbsp;be regarded as one cause of the rebellion. The governor. Captain Fitz-roy, bears testimony to the noble conduct of Heki after the battle ; andnbsp;all declare that no civilized power could have used their triumph with sonbsp;much humanity. A flag of truce was sent, and respected by each partynbsp;to bury their dead ; and two English officers of the Hazard (the man ofnbsp;war in the Bay of Islands) who were taken prisoners by Heki in thenbsp;conflict, had their swords returned to them, and were sent back to their

* It may he interesting to our readers to learn the names of the missionaries and catechists who have heen sent out hy the Church Missionary Society to labour in Newnbsp;Zealand. We therefore subjoin a comparative list of labourers, as shown by the Missionary Reports of 1833 and 1843.

In 1833 there were, in New Zealand, 4 ordained missionaries, viz. Revs. H. Williams, W. Williams, A. H. Brown, and W. Yate; and 14 catechists (two of whom, markednbsp;thus*, were amongst those sent out in 1815), viz. *J. King, J. Kemp, T. Chapman,nbsp;*W. Puckey, J. Hamlin, J. Preece, .1. Wilson, J. Shepherd, C. Baker, W. Fairburn,nbsp;G. Clarke, R. Davis, J. Matthews, and J. Morgan.

In 184.3 there were, in New Zealand, 12 ordained missionaries, viz. Revs. H. Williams, W. Williams, A. H. Brown, W. C. Dudley, S. Spencer, R. Maunsell, G. Kissling,nbsp;R. Taylor, 0. Hadfield, C. L. Reay, R. Davies, and R. Burrows; and 17 catechists, besides 266 native teachers, and schoolmasters and mistresses.

camp unhurt. The missionaries and their property were untouched and uninjured, � showing,� as a writer on this affair remarks, � how safe,nbsp;even when battle rages at their door, are those whom our heavenlynbsp;Father has promised to protect.� An instance of noble conduct on thenbsp;part of the natives was shown by their sending back (under the protection of a white flag) the wife and child of John Tapper, the signal-mannbsp;at the flag-staff, who had been wounded at the morning of the battle,nbsp;while bravely working one of the guns. Whence this wondrous changenbsp;in the conduct of the New Zealanders, so strongly contrasted with thatnbsp;which characterized them thirty years ago, before the Christian missionary boldly threw himself among them ? Whence, but from the Gospelnbsp;of the grace of God, ministered by those missionaries, whom now, alas !nbsp;many in these islands would calumniate ; for it seems by the accountsnbsp;sent home, that there are two parties among the Europeans, as well asnbsp;among the natives : one for the Queen of England and the missionaries,nbsp;good order, and obedience,�the other, for the rebellious Heki, for ill-will to the government, and discontent at restraint and discipline.

Let us all pray for New Zealand, that it may please Almighty God to avert the evils of a civil war from this newly-acquired and interesting

Polynesia is a term derived from the Greek, and signifies �many islands,� and is used to denote all the numerous groups of islands, which adornnbsp;the vast Pacific Ocean from New Guinea to the Marquesas. Many ofnbsp;these countless � Isles of the Sea,� have never yet been visited bynbsp;Christians, and are almost unknown to us, excepting perhaps in name.

The groups of islands, which have been brought under the influence of Christianity, are the Society Isles�the Georgian Isles�the Herveynbsp;Isles�the Austral Isles�the Samoas or Navigator�s Isles�the Pau-motu Isles�the Marquesas�the Friendly and Fejee Islands�the Newnbsp;Hebrides�and the Loyalty Islands. New Caledonia is a long singlenbsp;island unconnected with any group. To begin with the Society Islands,nbsp;which are two in number, viz., Tahiti and Eimeo.*

� Tahiti,� says Mr. Ellis, is justly called the � Queen of the Pacific,� It is indeed a most beautiful island, adorned with hills and valleys, broken and stupendous mountains, and rocky precipices, every where clothednbsp;with the richest vegetation. Tahiti is bordered along the coast by anbsp;tract of low alluvial sand. Orohena, the central and loftiest of thenbsp;mountains that rise in the interior, is between 6000 and 7000 feet abovenbsp;the sea. Mr. Ellis in his Polynesian Researches, gives a most glowingnbsp;description of the extreme beauty and luxuriance of the mountains andnbsp;valleys of Tahiti, which he says, � present some of the richest inlandnbsp;scenes that can be imagined.�

Eimeo is twelve or fourteen miles west of Tahiti, and is twenty-five miles in circumference. In the varied forms of its lovely mountains,

* All the vowels in the Polynesian languages are pronounced in the same manner as the Italian vowels, i.e. like the English words fulker, duy, sec, bo, and too.

its verdure, and the romantic and beautiful character of its scenery, this island far exceeds any in the Society or Georgian groups. It is alsonbsp;distinguished for the excellence of its harbours. The mountains arenbsp;broken and considerably elevated, but not so lofty as those of Tahiti.nbsp;A reef of coral like a ring, surrounds the island, in some places one ornbsp;two miles from the shore, in others united to the beach. The situationnbsp;of the South Sea Islands, being altogether between the tropics, theynbsp;are thus under the rays of an equatorial sun, and they might thereforenbsp;have been expected to have had a parched soil, and a burning chmate ;nbsp;but these evils are entirely averted by the moisture and breezes of suchnbsp;an extent of surrounding ocean, and by the mountains which rise to anbsp;considerable height in many of the islands, and sends down numerousnbsp;fertilizing streams into the valleys.

To give a more correct idea of the South Sea Islands ; Mr. Williams divides them into three classes.

The 1st. is the mountainous.�The islands of this class, he says, with few exceptions, are truly splendid. Their immense heights present everynbsp;variety of shape and fantastic form, of pyramid, spire, or castle. Beauty,nbsp;wildness, grandeur and sublimity are so blended and contrasted as tonbsp;excite the most varied and delightful feelings. At the base of thenbsp;mountains are fertile and luxuriant valleys, in which are interminglednbsp;the stately bread-fruit-tree, the banana, the lofty cocoa-nut tree with itsnbsp;gracefuUv waving plumes and many other tropical productions, some ofnbsp;which are trees of the most gigantic growth and the richest foliage.nbsp;The elevated portions of this class of islands, are from 2000 to 10,000nbsp;feet above the level of the sea. At the tops of the highest mountains, corals, shells, and other marine substances are found in greatnbsp;abundance.

The 2nd. class of islands are hilly, rather than mountainous,�averaging from 100 to 500 feet in height. They are, generally speaking, equally beautiful and luxuriant with those of the first class ; but less sublime in their character, from the absence of the pyramidal heights ofnbsp;the former class. These do not appear like the higher mountains ofnbsp;volcanic origin, the rocks being composed of crystallized carbonate ofnbsp;lime. They are supposed originally to have been of coral formation ;nbsp;but by exposure to the atmosphere, and the action of the water, thenbsp;loose particles of calcareous matter have been washed away, and thenbsp;whole mass has become hard and compact.

The 3rd. class is the low Coralline Islands.�These are generally small, though Tongataboo, which is of this class, is an exception to thatnbsp;fact, being about 100 miles in circumference. The soil upon these lownbsp;Coralline islands is so thin, that but little vegetation is produced upon

them, besides the cocoa-nut, palm, the Pandanus, (or screw-pine), some stunted hibiscus and other trees of dwarfish growth, with a quantitynbsp;of brush wood. But at Tongataboo and the Friendly Islands, the soilnbsp;being much deeper, every production of the first and second class ofnbsp;islands grows there in luxuriant profusion. Many islands in the Pacific,nbsp;are surrounded by a belt of coral rock from two or three to twentynbsp;yards in width, which is situated at different distances from the shore,nbsp;from one or two miles, to a few yards, and in all of which is found anbsp;natural opening or entrance. These coral reefs seem destined by anbsp;gracious Creator for the protection of these numerous small islands,nbsp;for Mr. Williams observes, � Against these wonderful local barriers,nbsp;the long rolling waves of the wide Pacific are driven with terrificnbsp;violence ; and, towering in one vast sheet of water to an immense height,nbsp;with majestic power they curl their foaming tops over the reef, andnbsp;bursting against this rocky bulwark, spend their harmless vengeancenbsp;upon its surface.� The waters between the reef and the shore arenbsp;placid and transparent, and at the bottom, grow corals of every variety,nbsp;shape, and hue, a kind of sub-marine flower-garden of exquisite beautynbsp;�amongst which, fish of every size and colour are seen gambohng innbsp;conscious security.*

The island of Raiatea, the largest and most central of the Georgian Islands, is 100 miles distant from Tahiti.* Mr. Ellis describes this islandnbsp;as remarkably broken in its aspect, and beautiful in its mountain scenery,nbsp;as well as rich and verdant, and abounding with wood. Mr. Herveynbsp;thus describes the six islands of the Hervey group ; Mauke, is a smallnbsp;low island, fifteen miles in circumference ; population in 1823, reducednbsp;by devastating wars to 300.

Atiu, is twenty miles in circumference, a beautiful verdant and hilly island, population in 1823, 2000 persons.

Mangaia, is twenty-five miles in circumference. It is not so low as the two preceding islands, and the foliage is very luxuriant. The population is between 2 and 3000. The sugar-cane grows remarkably well innbsp;this island.

Aitutaki, is eighteen miles in circumference, with a population of 2000, in 1823. Like most of its companions in the group, its landscapes are rich and varigated. A coral reef extends all round it atnbsp;some distance from the shore, with a good entrance on the westernnbsp;side.

a mass of high mountains, presenting a most remarkable appearance. The island has several good boat harbours, is thirty miles in circumference, and is surrounded by a coral reef. It is represented by Mr.nbsp;Williams as extremely luxuriant, and was more highly cultivated thannbsp;any of the islands, when the Missionaries first visited the group innbsp;1823.

The plants and vegetable productions of the South Sea Islands afibrd abundance of wholesome and nutritious food to their inhabitants, although but little of their spontaneous produce is found available fornbsp;purposes of barter or exportation. The indigenous plants most usednbsp;for food by the natives are, the hread-fruit-tree, the banana, and plantain, the yam, and the cocoa-nut-tree, also the kumera, and the arumnbsp;esculentum, the root of which they pound and use for food by the namenbsp;of taro. The bread-fruit is about six inches in diameter, enclosed in anbsp;roughish rind of a pale-green colour. The tree itself has dark-greennbsp;shining leaves, from twelve to eighteen inches long, and is one of thenbsp;most splendid objects to he met with among the rich and diversifiednbsp;scenery of a Tahitian landscape.

The sugar-cane grows wild in the Sandwich Islands, and was formerly cultivated there to be eaten raw when young. The missionaries introduced the manufacture of sugar into the South Sea Islands, andnbsp;cotton, tobacco, coffee, and arrow-root have been brought by them fromnbsp;other parts of the world, and thrive remarkably well. The fruit of thenbsp;banana and plantain forms great part of the food of the Friendlynbsp;Islanders, although they depend principally upon the yam, in the cultivation of which they excel. The roots of a very beautiful species ofnbsp;fern are eaten by the natives in times of scarcity.

The Navigator�s group is, with the exception of the Sandwich Islands, the largest and most populous in the Pacific, at which missions havenbsp;been formed. Savaii is the largest, and is 250 miles in circumference.nbsp;Its mountains are very lofty and crowned with noble forests. In pointnbsp;of extent, beauty, and importance, Mr. Williams observes, that � Savaiinbsp;yields to few of the many charming islands which bestud and adornnbsp;the bosom of the Pacific.� The Samoo or Navigator�s Islands aboundnbsp;with springs, lakes, and streams. Their soil is exceedingly rich, andnbsp;coffee, sugar, and cotton, and every other tropical production, might benbsp;raised to almost any amount. The trees (as at Tahiti) exhibit greatnbsp;variety and beauty, and some of them are very valuable as timber.*

We have already noticed the bread-fruit-tree, which is so useful to the natives of these islands as food, but it requires depth of soil, and

cannot grow upon the low coralline islands ; but here the inhabitants are not left to perish, for where the bread-fruit-tree will not exist, therenbsp;the cocoa-nut flourishes ; and the various uses of this tree have alreadynbsp;been mentioned in treating of Hindostan. The Polynesians make theirnbsp;houses and canoes of its timber, and their garments and boat-sails ofnbsp;its fibrous leafy appendages, but its principal use, in these islands, consists in the supply it yields of food and water. In many of the low coralnbsp;isltmds there are no streams or springs, and were it not for this invaluable tree the inhabitants must perish : a native by climbing its cylindrical trunk, can pluck a dozen of unripe nuts, each containing a pint ornbsp;more of water, which, before the kernel is formed, is perfectly clear,nbsp;and combines a degree of acidity and sweetness which renders it asnbsp;refreshing as lemonade.*

The animals of Polynesia are not numerous. There is a wild-dog found in some few of the islands. The missionaries have imported thenbsp;cattle, pigs, goats, and cats. Rats abound in some of the islands, andnbsp;turtle and fish are abundant throughout the Pacific. Vampire-bats andnbsp;owls are mentioned by Williams, and some species of doves, also parroquets, water-hens, wood-pigeons, and wild-ducks. Snakes are unknownnbsp;at the Society and Hervey groups, but abound in the Navigators� group:nbsp;the natives esteem both the land and sea snakes good for food. Largenbsp;lizards also abound on the Savaii mountains, but none of these reptilesnbsp;are venomous.

The climate of the Sandwich islands is reckoned the most salubrious in the tropical regions. The cotton-tree grows to great perfection, butnbsp;the natives have no knowledge of the art of converting its produce intonbsp;cloth : all their garments of cloth are of foreign manufacture.

With regard to the Friendly Islands, the Rev. W. Yate makes the following remarks : � In the luxurious climate of these islands there isnbsp;scarcely any need of labour to obtain the necessaries and even many ofnbsp;the luxuries of life. Blessed with a soil peculiarly rich, and which isnbsp;fed with the superabundance of its own vegetation�with an atmospherenbsp;remarkably hot and humid, all the tropical fruits and roots flourishnbsp;abundantly without the aid of man, and the most costly supplies ofnbsp;food can be obtained without difficulty. The natives are consequentlynbsp;idle to a proverb, and when I was there, their reception of the gospelnbsp;had not excited them to improve their temporal condition, or to add bynbsp;industry to their comforts ; and since my return in 1830, the missionariesnbsp;say that � the natives will not work, and that their vagrant and idlenbsp;habits are not at all improved.� � Thia is by no means the case in

New Zealand,� he adds ; � there are no fruits or vegetables in those islands of indigenous and spontaneous growth ; those which they requirenbsp;for food must be cultivated and tended constantly, and there are onlynbsp;two months in the year in which the natives of New Zealand can saynbsp;they have nothing to do in their provision-grounds. There is consequently no effeminacy about the New Zealander�he is obliged to worknbsp;if he would eat ; he has no cocoas or bananas growing without cultivation ; and the very fem-root upon which they used, in former times,nbsp;principally to subsist, is not obtained without immense labour.� *

It was not until the year 1767, that Captain Wallis, commander of His Majesty�s ship Dolphin, when crossing the hitherto-untraversednbsp;waters of the Southern Pacific Ocean, discovered the splendid island ofnbsp;Tahiti, which has since occupied so prominent a place in the annals ofnbsp;missionary enterprize. He took possession of the island in the name ofnbsp;his sovereign. King George III., httle thinking (as the late respectednbsp;Mr. Wilhams observes) that the Christian missionary would so soonnbsp;follow in his track, unfurl another banner, and take possession of thatnbsp;and other islands in the name of the King of kings.� f A few yearsnbsp;after its discovery by Captain Wallis, Tahiti was three times visited bynbsp;that truly great man Captain Cook, whose objects in navigating thenbsp;vast Pacific, were purely scientific. Besides New Holland and Newnbsp;Guinea, he discovered and named many of the almost numberless islandsnbsp;of these seas. The accounts published of these newly-discovered regionsnbsp;naturally produced great interest in England, and the mind of thenbsp;Countess of Huntingdon was deeplv impressed by the reports given ofnbsp;the state of the people inhabiting these interesting islands, and in hernbsp;dying charge to her chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Haweis (the founder of thenbsp;London Missionary Society), she begged him never to lose sight ofnbsp;her desired object,�that of planting the Gospel among the South Seanbsp;islanders. �

Unlike the New Zealanders, the South Sea islanders were found to have something like governments and national laws : many of the islandsnbsp;were governed by one king. The inhabitants of Rarotonga held fournbsp;distinctions of rank: 1st, the king; 2nd, governors of districts; 3rd,nbsp;the landholders, and 4th, tenants. The island of Rarotonga is divided

See Williams� �Narrative of Missionary Enterprises,� 1st edit. p. 3. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ib. p. 4.

into three districts, each governed by its own chief ; and a fourth is appointed, who holds a limited supremacy over the whole. In consequence of these ancient political divisions, the missionaries thought itnbsp;best to have three distinct missionary settlements in this island ; so thatnbsp;all the inhabitants now reside under their respective chiefs and respective missionaries, enjoying the inestimable blessings of peace and Christian instruction. The governments of the different South Sea islandsnbsp;present many points of resemblance, but almost every group has somenbsp;peculiarities. At Tongataba the chiefs are elected and their power isnbsp;limited, while at the rest of the Friendly group they are hereditary andnbsp;despotic. At the Samoas every settlement is a little independent state,nbsp;governed by its own chief, whose authority appears not extensive,*

It was a favourable circumstance attending the change that has taken place in the Society and Sandwich islands, that each island had its ownnbsp;king, or, as in some instances, that several islands were under the government of a principal chief, or king, whose influence in uniting the peoplenbsp;under one head, predisposed them, as a nation, to receive the instructions imparted by men who were countenanced and protected by thenbsp;high authority of kingly power, t

The introduction of Christianity into these islands has been followed by the blessings usually attending civilized life, as arts, manufactures,nbsp;and commerce. Connected with these, the missionaries have introducednbsp;the knowledge of house-building, smith-work, ship-building, turning,nbsp;lime-burning, cabinet-making, and printing, with the manufacture ofnbsp;sugar, cotton, and tobacco. Of plants, they have introduced cotton,nbsp;coffee, indigo, pine-apples, pumpkins, melons, and sweet-potatoes, withnbsp;a variety of European fruits and vegetables. The South Sea arrowroot is become an article of commerce, and so are pearl-shells andnbsp;pearls, and in this latter trade upwards of twenty Tahitian vessels werenbsp;employed by the queen of that island in 1838. But it was not till afternbsp;Christianity was introduced among them, that the Polynesians showednbsp;any desire to obtain these advantages. Mr. Williams observes, in hisnbsp;Narrative, that while the natives were under the influence of their debasing superstitions, they evinced an inanity and torpor from whichnbsp;nothing would serve to rouse them, till they imbibed those new principles which Christianity alone can bestow.

The Governors of the British colony of New South Wales have uniformly shown the most friendly feeling towards the missions to the South Sea Islands ; and their chaplain, the revered Mr. Samuel Marsden, always assisted the missionaries as far as lay in his power. In

* See Williams�s � Narrative,� p. 4S4. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f See Ellis�s � Polynesia,� p. 38.

1813, and again in 1817, acts were passed in the British Parhament, to protect the missions and the natives of the islands from the depredations of ship�s crews and runaway sailors and convicts, who by theirnbsp;bad conduct often did such mischief to the cause of Christianity innbsp;these seas.

In 1824, the Tahitian code of laws was revised and enlarged, and a most important law was then introduced, which gave to the nation fornbsp;the first time what might be termed a representative form of government, and rendered the Tahitian monarchy limited instead of absolute.nbsp;It was then decreed that members from every district in the islandnbsp;should meet annually for the purpose of making and enacting new laws,nbsp;and amending those already in existence. The inhabitants of eachnbsp;district were to elect their representatives every three years, and allnbsp;regulations proposed by them were to receive the royal sanction beforenbsp;passing into a law. The first Tahitian parhament met together innbsp;1826, and passed several laws regarding the punishment of disorderlynbsp;sailors, who were in the habit of leaving or deserting their ships, andnbsp;occasioning disturbances among the natives of the island.*

Since Britain and other great maritime nations have extended their commerce to the most distant regions, the islands of the South Pacificnbsp;have been included in the regular commercial lines by which the oceannbsp;is traversed. As the voyage from England to her Australian settlements, by Cape Horn, is nearly the same length as that by the Cape ofnbsp;Good Hope, vessels frequently prefer it ; and are thus led to touch fornbsp;refreshment at the Society and Georgian Islands. The Sandwichnbsp;Islands are situated within the course of the whale-fishery in the Northnbsp;Pacific Ocean, and also of the fur-traders who pass between Northnbsp;America and China ; hence the harbours of these islands are sometimesnbsp;crowded with vessels, and American merchants have indeed settled innbsp;their ports.f

The British government has not deemed it advisable to colonize or take under its protection any of the South Sea islands. The Frenchnbsp;have of late years endeavoured to subdue Tahiti ; and that beautifulnbsp;island, with its fine people just emerging from barbarism and idolatry,nbsp;to the pure faith of the gospel, as well as to civihzation and a degree ofnbsp;commercial importance, has become the theatre of ruinous war andnbsp;bloodshed, which must ever be deeply lamented by every sincere Christian. The missionaries of the London Society have in consequence ofnbsp;these severe troubles left the island, and so has the queen, who for some

* See Ellis�s � Polynesian Researches,� pp. 426�430. See Murray's � Encyclopedia of Geography,� p. 1.525.

months took shelter on board the British man-of-war frequenting these seas for the protection of our commerce between our Australian coloniesnbsp;and the South Sea Islands.

The missionaries state that Hawaii, the largest of the Sandwich Islands, contains a population of 75,000 souls, and is about 240 milesnbsp;in circumference ; and that the second island in this group, Oahu, isnbsp;about 90 miles in circumference, and has a population of nearly 40,000.*nbsp;The government of Hawaii is an absolute and despotic monarchy. Thenbsp;whole population of the Sandwich group is supposed to amount to aboutnbsp;185,000 souls.t

Commerce generally is greatly benefitted by the introduction of Christianity in the islands of the Pacific, as fresh ports are continually opened where merchants may carry on their speculations with advantage. Therenbsp;is now on these islands a great consumption of English goods, especially such as are manufactured at Manchester and Sheffield, In thenbsp;port of Papiete, in Tahiti, there are native goods sold annually to thenbsp;amount of full �6000. This is, however, a mere trifle, compared withnbsp;the extent of commerce carried on at the Sandwich Islands. Many ofnbsp;the Sandwich Islanders now trade to a considerable extent ; some raisenbsp;large quantities of cocoa-nut oil, arrow-root, and sugar, that they maynbsp;have something to barter with when an opportunity offers. Some ofnbsp;the missionaries� sons are now setting up as merchants, and endeavouring to extend commerce as widely as possible. In addition tonbsp;these temporal advantages, arising from the change effected in Polynesia, there are spiritual benefits which foreigners may enjoy. Whilenbsp;the ships are in port, the crews have opportunities of attending thenbsp;means of grace. The missionaries not only supply them with tracts,nbsp;Bibles, and other good books, but are always happy to preach to them,nbsp;either on board their ships or on shore. At Tahiti and the Sandwichnbsp;islands chapels have been erected (with libraries attached to them),nbsp;especially for the use of foreigners. Another very considerable benefitnbsp;produced is the great facility with which ships may now obtain supplies.nbsp;There is an immense number of English and American whalers dailynbsp;traversing the Great Pacific Ocean, These voyages are usually verynbsp;long, frequently from three to four years� duration ; consequently it is.nbsp;of the highest importance that they should be able occasionally tonbsp;obtain fresh supplies of provisions. Since the gospel has been introduced to so many islands (it is affirmed as many as one hundred), thesenbsp;means of obtaining supplies are amply afforded, the health of the sea-

* See � Annual Report of the American Board of Missions� for 18,31. Ibid, for 1832, p. 76.

men is hereby preserved, and much time saved. Here trading-vessels can procure live-stock, vegetables, and fruit, with fresh-water and firewood, at a much lower rate than at any other part of the world.*

There are two distinct races inhabiting the numerous groups of islands in the Great Southern Pacific. The Feejee Islands, the New Hebrides,nbsp;the Loyalty group, Solomon�s Isles, New Caledonia, New Zealand,nbsp;New Guinea, and New Holland, are all inhabited by tribes, differingnbsp;somewhat from each other in appearance and habits, but all belongingnbsp;to the Ethiopian or Negro race of mankind. These all have the blacknbsp;complexion, spreading noses, and crisped hair of the African ; while thenbsp;inhabitants of the islands lying to the eastward, viz. the Friendly,nbsp;Society, Georgian, the Navigators�, and Harvey groups, are distinguished by their light, copper-coloured skins, their Malay or Asiaticnbsp;countenances, and their long straight hair.

* See The Missionary�s Reward, or the Success of the Gospel in the Pacific. By George Pritchard, Esq. 1844.

veyed (exclusive of New Zealand), are supposed, by the missionary Williams, to contain a population approaching to 300,000 persons.nbsp;Their characters were various before the Christian missions were established amongst them, as some were cannibals of the worst description,nbsp;and others were of ferocious habits and cruel practices, using poisonednbsp;arrows, and even poisoning the very food they brought to the Europeans for sale, while others were mild in their manners, and kind innbsp;their treatment of strangers. The South Sea islanders, though exhibiting a great degree of indolence before the introduction of Christianitynbsp;amongst them, showed, after they had been led to embrace its doctrinesnbsp;and its spirit, a very ingenious and quick turn of mind, and were particularly apt at learning various useful arts and trades, as may be seennbsp;from the account given of the people of Raiatea, one of the Societynbsp;Islands, as early as the year 1821. The. missionaries write respectingnbsp;these people :�� With what pleasure did we behold their industry !nbsp;Some engaged in the different branches of carpentry, some in boxmaking, some in bedstead-making, others making very neat sofas withnbsp;turned legs ; some were employed in lime-burning, some in plastering,nbsp;some in sawing, some in boat-building, some working at the forge,nbsp;some sugar-boiling ; besides these various trades, the women are equallynbsp;busy in making gowns, plaiting bark to make hats and bonnets.� *

Notwithstanding their former ferocious and cruel dispositions, they seem, by the accounts of Williams and others, to have evinced muchnbsp;natural affection in the relations they bore to one another. Polygamynbsp;was universally practised by the South Sea islanders, and the missionaries had some trouble and difficulty in getting them to renounce thisnbsp;sin. Their civU laws were so intimately interwoven with their sanguinary idolatry, that when the one was overthrown the other perishednbsp;too ; so that in some of the islands where the chiefs had not the understanding and experience necessary to frame new laws upon Christiannbsp;principles, the people applied to the missionaries to give them such lawsnbsp;and punishments as were in accordance with the religion of mercynbsp;which they had embraced. Thus the missionaries drew up a code ofnbsp;laws for Rarotonga and Raiatea, and recommended the people to adoptnbsp;trial by jury. In endeavouring to settle the laws by which the peoplenbsp;who had cast off their cruel and superstitious customs, should be governed, many ancient usages were found extremely difficult to get ridnbsp;of. One of these was a very unnatural practice called � Kukuma anga.�nbsp;As soon as a son reached manhood, it was the custom for him to engagenbsp;in single combat with his father ; and if he obtained the victory, he was

to take possession of the farm previously belonging to the parent, whom he drove in a state of destitution from his home. Another perplexingnbsp;custom was the � ao anga ; � when a wife lost her husband by death,nbsp;the relations of the latter came and seized every article of value belonging to the deceased, turned the disconsolate widow and her offspringnbsp;away, and possessed themselves of the house, the food, and the land.nbsp;Another difficulty was produced by what they called � Kai kainga,� ornbsp;land-eating, which is getting unjust possession of each other�s lands.*nbsp;They appear, notwithstanding these cruel customs, not to be destitute ofnbsp;kindly feehng, and very quick and active, when their minds are oncenbsp;set upon any work or undertaking.

The South Sea islanders are remarkable for their native eloquence and graceful flow of language, and their similes are often very simple andnbsp;beautiful. Notwithstanding these pleasing qualities, before the introduction of the gospel the different tribes were continually at war withnbsp;each other. The Rarotongans, says Mr. Williams, had just been engaged in a disastrous conflict when we discovered the island, and thenbsp;sad effects were still visible, for the laws of savage warfare, are tonbsp;� bum, kill, and destroy,� and there was not one old cocoa-nut-tree tonbsp;be found in the north, west, and south sides of Rarotonga ; a few oldnbsp;bread-fruit-trees alone reared their stately heads, having survived thenbsp;injuries they had received from the devastating conquerors. Their warsnbsp;were cruel and sanguinary to a frightful degree. Female prisonersnbsp;were generally put to death, and their poor little children carried innbsp;triumph as sacrifices to the Marae, or temple. Of late years, as soonnbsp;as an antagonist was overcome in battle, the victor beat in his skuU,nbsp;and taking out a portion of his brains, he placed it upon bread-fruitnbsp;leaves, and carried it immediately to the temple, to present it to thenbsp;gods, as an earnest of the victim he was about to bring.f

Females at the Society Islands, and at Rarotonga, were treated always as inferior beings, but particularly so at the latter island, where theynbsp;were not allowed to inherit land. Mr. WiUiams observes, in his � Narrative,� that � the Rarotongan women were more faithful, industrious,nbsp;and affectionate than those of Tahiti, and that, during the sicknessnbsp;which prevailed soon after the arrival of the missionaries, they were delighted to see the tender sympathy and unremitting attention theynbsp;showed to their sick husbands.

The Ono, or systematic revenge for injuries sustained, prevailed generally throughout the South Pacific islands, before Christianity was introduced ; it was considered as a legacy bequeathed from father to son,

to avenge any wrong done to any member of their family, even if an opportunity did not occur till the third or fourth generation.

The inhabitants of some of the islands are extremely ingenious. Mr. W. informs us that the remarkable ingenuity of the Mangaians is displayed in the fabrication and patterns of their native cloth, and thenbsp;construction of their spears, bowls, and other articles, but more especially in the wooden handles of their stone axes, which are most exquisitely carved, and with no other tools than those made of sharks�nbsp;teeth and shells. Their cocoa-nut drinking-cups were covered withnbsp;carved figures ; and as soon as they learnt the art of writing they addednbsp;to these, passages of scripture. They also carved the large posts (oftennbsp;twelve and eighteen inches square, and twenty-five feet high) that supported the roofs of their chapels ; these, with the ridge-poles and rafters,nbsp;were generally most tastefully covered with beautiful carved work, andnbsp;coloured with various native preparations. The effect on first enteringnbsp;one of these chapels thus ornamented is very striking. Their dwelhngsnbsp;were made of wooden poles, and thatched with fem or cocoa-nut leaves.nbsp;The prevailing native dress before the introduction of European clothing, was the tiputa, made of native cloth, which something resemblesnbsp;the Spanish poncho, and is a piece of cloth about three quarters of anbsp;yard wide, and three yards long, with a slit in the centre, throughnbsp;which the head is put, so that the garment hangs down before andnbsp;behind.*

The principal food of the Polynesians is fish and vegetables ; the taro (arum) is cultivated to a great extent, and the ground is keptnbsp;in great order by old women and girls. The root is cooked and eatennbsp;like potatoes. The bread-fruit is cooked in ovens, and is a favouritenbsp;and nutritious article of food. They cultivate also yams and arrowroot ; and the cocoa-nut forms a considerable part of their diet. Therenbsp;are pigs in many of the islands, which in the Society Islands, they roastnbsp;and eat upon grand occasions. They have a method of smoke-dryingnbsp;the flying-fish, that abounds in these seas, and so prepared they willnbsp;keep a long time.

Prior to the introduction of Christianity into the islands of the Pacific, the aged people of both sexes were treated with the greatest cruelty bynbsp;their relatives and friends ; for as soon as they became burdensome,nbsp;their friends, or even their own children, relieved themselves from further trouble by putting an end to their existence, and even after the

* At the Navigators� Islands, the women wore heantiful native-wrought mats, fastened round their waists, and their heads adorned with flowers, and were profusely scentednbsp;with cocoa-nut oil.

introduction of tlie Gospel they were far from treating their aged relatives with becoming kindness.

Respecting the copper-coloured Polynesians who inhabit the Society, Harvey, and Navigator�s Islands, Mr. Williams remarks that they arenbsp;to be viewed among the finest specimens of the human family : the mennbsp;being tall and strong, often upwards of six feet in height, exhibiting fornbsp;the most part all that is perfect in proportion, and exquisite in symmetry. Both men and women are distinguished for their vivacity, and thenbsp;natural ease and rapidity of their movements. The missionary Williamsnbsp;observes, that almost every race of man thinks itself the wisest, and thatnbsp;it is even common for the South Sea islanders to say when they see anynbsp;one exceedingly awkward, � How stupid you are ; perhaps you are annbsp;Englishman.� He adds, at the same time, that they give us credit fornbsp;superiority in some respects, they laugh at the awkwardness of Englishmen in such things as they are more expert in,�as climbing, swimming, amp;c. The South Sea islanders exhibit much wit, ingenuity, andnbsp;quickness of perception ; they have a' good memory and a thirst afternbsp;knowledge, when its value is perceived. They are very ready at acquiring new and useful arts, and express themselves in speaking, withnbsp;great force and precision, and their occasional bursts of natural eloquencenbsp;are of a very high order.*

It is said they scalped their enemies whom they slew in battle, and presented the scalp either to the king or to the relatives of thosenbsp;who had fallen, by whom it was highly prized. Spears, armed withnbsp;shark�s teeth, and large wooden clubs were their principal weapons.nbsp;The former they were extremely expert at throwing. The light-heartednbsp;Polynesians are very fond of various kinds of active amusements, asnbsp;canoe-rowing, boxing, wrestling, dancing, and fowling. Some of theirnbsp;tribes are very fond of singing, and the women compose songs to accompany their graceful dances. They are very fond of decorating theirnbsp;persons with flowers, which they weave into chaplets for the head.nbsp;The chief Polynesian manufactures are their native cloth, baskets, andnbsp;the manufacture of fish-hooks from bone, mother-of-pearl, or turtleshell ; the baskets are beautifully woven of the palm-leaf.

For clothing, the Polynesians formerly used the bark of the morus papyrifera, or paper mulberry ; the manufacture of their native clothnbsp;which served for garments as well as bedding, fell to the department ofnbsp;the women. It was a tedious process, and took five pieces of fournbsp;yards long to make the garment, or cloth which the females wore roundnbsp;their waists ; but the missionaries have introduced European clothing to

a considerable extent. The thickness of the native cloth is various,� some being like thick paper or morocco-leather, while other kinds arenbsp;as fine as Italian crape. The maUets with which they beat out thenbsp;bark are four-sided, one side being smooth, another coarsely grooved,nbsp;the third more finely furried, and the fourth closely checked in squaresnbsp;or diamonds, and thus the pattern may be varied, and cloth producednbsp;either smooth, striped, corded or checked. This cloth took a beautifulnbsp;dye, and much taste was displayed by the natives in blending the huesnbsp;and figures. The best is little inferior in appearance to fine chintz ; butnbsp;it is a costly article, as it will not bear wetting, and much labour is required in its preparation.*

The Polynesians embalmed the bodies of their chiefs, and thus preserved them for some months in small neat houses built for the purpose. When the body had at length decayed, the skull was preserved withnbsp;great care. They employed a number of rites and ceremonies, withnbsp;prayers for the spirits of the dead, which were performed by differentnbsp;priests who each received their appointed fees. Their dead were buriednbsp;in a sitting posture, and adorned with wreaths and garlands of sweet-scented flowers. They made great howling and lamentations for theirnbsp;deceased relatives, and cut themselves with shark�s teeth, till the bloodnbsp;streamed down their bodies. Since the introduction of Christianity,nbsp;these and other barbarous and heathen customs connected with thenbsp;death and burial of the natives have ceased, and the rites and usages ofnbsp;Christian burial, as far as it seemed desirable, have been introduced bynbsp;the missionaries, and a piece of ground at each station, at a distancenbsp;from the houses, has been devoted by the native governments to thenbsp;purposes of interment.^

See Marray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography,� p, 15'24. t See Ellis's � Polynesian Researches,� p. 534.

The superstitious worship of the different races of Polynesians, when in a state of heathenism, varied considerably ; for instance, the Tahitiansnbsp;and Rarotongans sacrificed human beings to their gods, but thenbsp;Samoans, (or natives of the Navigators� Islands) made use of neithernbsp;temples, altars, nor offerings, and consequently observed none of thenbsp;barbarous and sanguinary rites observed in many of the South Seanbsp;Islands. The objects which the Polynesians worshipped before thenbsp;light of the gospel shone upon their dark hearts, were of three kinds,�nbsp;viz. 1st, the spirits of their ancestors; 2nd, idols made of wood ofnbsp;various sizes, shapes, and descriptions;* and 3rd, their �etus,� whichnbsp;consisted of some bird, fish, or reptile, in which they believed that anbsp;spirit resided, and this latter form of idolatry prevailed more at thenbsp;Samoa Islands than at any others. In addition to these objects ofnbsp;worship, the Polynesians generally (and the Samoans in particular) hadnbsp;a vague idea of a Supreme Being, whom they regarded as the Creator

* Sometimes the idol was a shapeless stick carved at one end, into something like a human face, and wound round with native cloth till it became two or three feet innbsp;diameter.

of all things, and the author of all their mercies. Their name for this Great Being was Tangaloa, and Mr. Williams was informed that atnbsp;their feasts, they used to rise up, and after enumerating each article ofnbsp;good, an orator exclaimed, � Thank you, great Tangaloa, for this ! � *

The offerings made by the South Sea Islanders to their gods generally consisted of pigs, fish, vegetables, native cloth, canoes, and other valuable property. The infliction of injuries upon themselves, wasnbsp;another mode in which they worshipped their gods. It was a constantnbsp;practice with the Sandwich islanders, in performing some of their heathen rites, to knock out their front teeth, and the Friendly islanders usednbsp;to cut off one or two of the bones of their little fingers to propitiate theirnbsp;gods ! t Id all these self-inflicted tortures, they bad an idea that thenbsp;blood which flowed from the wounds would appease the anger of thenbsp;gods, and induce them to be kind to them and do them good. Thusnbsp;� are their sorrows multiplied, who hasten after other gods.� But thenbsp;most affecting and horrible of their religious observances, was that ofnbsp;presenting human victims ! At the Society islands in particular, thisnbsp;was carried to an extent truly appalling.

After their wars, in which the temples and their gods were often desecrated by the enemy, they had what they called � the Feast ofnbsp;Restoration,� at which no less than seven human victims were alwaysnbsp;required, this was supposed by them to restore the Marac to its previousnbsp;sanctity, and reinstate the god in his former glory. At the inaugurationnbsp;of every new Sovereign too, and upon the eve of a battle, humannbsp;victims were invariably offered.! It is interesting to know that thenbsp;very last human sacrifice offered in Tahiti, was a man who (to use hisnbsp;own simple phrase) had �begun to pray to Jesus.� He was sent fornbsp;on this very account by Pomare, on the eve of the last battle he foughtnbsp;with the rebels, which reinstated him in his dominions, shortly afternbsp;which event, the king renounced his idols, and became himself one ofnbsp;� the praying people.� These very people who, a few years ago, werenbsp;addicted to aU these horrid practices, now sit by thousands in places ofnbsp;Christian worship, erected by themselves, � clothed, and in their rightnbsp;mind,� and listen with intense interest to the truths of the Gospel.�

At the Feejee islands, when a chief dies, four of his most esteemed wives are offered as a sacrifice, that the spirit of their lord may not benbsp;lonely in its passage to the invisible world, and that its future happinessnbsp;may be secured. Thus gross and horrible is the darkness of heathenism ! Infanticide was carried to a great extent at Tahiti, and the rest

* See Williams�s � Narrative,� pp. 468�470. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid. p. 470.

� At Rarotonga, two human victims were offered at the birth of a son of a principal chief.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;S See Williams's � Narrative,� p. 476.

of the Society islands. When the Polynesian women hecarae consistent Christians, none of their sins used to distress them so deeply as thenbsp;recollection of the children they had murdered, and when after the introduction of Christianity, the female children (who before were sacrificed by their parents,) were saved, clothed, and instructed, it was mostnbsp;heart-rending to hear the lamentations of the people ; who like the oldnbsp;Chief of Racatea, at the school examination, exclaimed, � Oh ! that wenbsp;had known that the gospel was coming, and that these blessings werenbsp;in store for us, then I should have saved my children, and they wouldnbsp;have been among this happy group, repeating these precious truths ;nbsp;but, alas ! I destroyed them all, I have not one left ! � The reasonsnbsp;given for this inhuman and cruel practice were, the horrors of their frequent wars, and the inequality of rank between the parents, whichnbsp;required the destruction of two, four, or six of their children beforenbsp;one parent could be raised to equal dignity with the other. �No people in the world,� says Mr, Elhs in his � Polynesian Researches,� innbsp;ancient or modern times appear to have been more superstitious thannbsp;the South Sea Islanders, or to have been more under the influence ofnbsp;dread from imaginary demons, or supernatural beings. Sorcery andnbsp;witchcraft were extensively practised amongst them. By these arts,nbsp;the sorcerers pretended to be able to inflict the most painful maladies,nbsp;and even to deprive of life the victims of their mysterious rites. Whether they effected this by poison, or whether Satanic agency was reallynbsp;permitted to influence their bodies, we cannot now determine ; individual natives sometimes now express their deliberate conviction, that itnbsp;is because they live under the dispensation or government of Jesusnbsp;Christ ; that they are now exempt from those bodily sufferings to whichnbsp;they were subject while they were willing and zealous devotees ofnbsp;Satan. It is, I believe, (continues Mr. Ellis) an indisputable fact, thatnbsp;those kinds of violent and terrific and fatal agony, which they attributednbsp;to this agency, have altogether ceased, since that system was overthrown of which it formed so dreadful a part; while the people remainednbsp;heathens they firmly believed in the power of the sorcerers, and werenbsp;kept in constant slavish fear of the demons, but it is a fact that the incantations of the priests were harmless when employed upon Europeans,nbsp;and the natives always declared that they could not prevail against thenbsp;white men, because they were under the keeping of a more powerfulnbsp;being than the spirits they could engage against them, and therefore thenbsp;Christians were secure.*

need the gospel, and that nothing but the gospel can raise them from the degradation into which they have been sunk by superstition andnbsp;sin.* Nothing shows more strikingly the great change that has takennbsp;place since these poor heathen islanders have embraced the gospel, thannbsp;their conduct and words at the hour of death : they formerly used thenbsp;most vain and superstitious rites and ceremonies over the sick, to appeasenbsp;the supposed anger of their gods, and prevent their sulFering in anothernbsp;world, but now, we read of many instances of their firm faith and trust innbsp;the Saviour ; such as the aged and venerable Matohria, who said on hisnbsp;death-bed, � One thing, of all I have read or heard, now supports mynbsp;mind,� Christ has said, � I am the way.� And again, of one who composed the following lines, and sung in the native language with thenbsp;latest breath she drew�

Until 1810, the inhabitants of the Sandwich Islands were gross idolaters. The Taboo system is supposed to have been in operation among them, and most rigidly observed, for thousands of years. By this everynbsp;thing was prohibited which was contrary to the will of the King. Itnbsp;perpetually interdicted certain kinds of food. Persons who were tabooednbsp;were forbidden to eat pork or plantains, two very important articles ofnbsp;food in these islands. The taboo laws also prohibited the doing certainnbsp;things upon certain days, as at the full moon, new moon, and its quarters, and when the King was in the � Moral � (or Marac) performingnbsp;the various mummeries of idolatry. A breach of these laws werenbsp;punished by death ! Their morals were sacred enclosures formed by anbsp;fence, where human sacrifices were oflfered. Before them stood thenbsp;idols, from three to fourteen feet high, most fantastically decorated,nbsp;while the upper part was carved into a hideous resemblance of thenbsp;human face. To these idols costly sacrifices were constantly presented, and the priests on certain occasions required human victims.

* A description of all the horrors of infanticide, as related by Mr. Ellis, conveys a most powerful conviction of the true character of heathenism, and the miseries which itsnbsp;victims endure. See Ellis�s � Polynesian Researches,� vol. i. p. 340.

� God had prepared the people, for the thing was done suddenly.'quot;�2 Chron. xxix. 36. � My righteousness is near ; my salvation is gone forth, and mine am shall judge thenbsp;people ; the isles shall v-ait upon me, and on mine arm shall they trust.quot;��Isa. li. 5.

� The Lord reigneth ; let tlte earth rejoice ; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof Ye that love the Lord, hate evil. He preservelh the souls of his saints, he delivereth themnbsp;out of the hand of the wicked.quot;�Psalm xcvii. 1,10.

The London Missionary Society was formed in 1795, and the Rev. Dr. Haweis, one of its chief founders, recommended that the islands ofnbsp;the Pacitic Ocean should be the first scene of its missionary labours.nbsp;Accordingly, in 1796, twenty-nine missionaries embarked at London onnbsp;board the Duff, a vessel purchased by the newly-formed Missionarynbsp;Society, and commanded by Captain James Wilson, who for severalnbsp;years past had retired from sea, but came forward on this occasion withnbsp;the oiler of his services.* They intended to sail by way of Cape Horn,nbsp;but the wind proving contrary, they turned their course and went eastwards by the Cape of Good Hope ; and though they thereby encountered a tremendous storm, yet (through the mercy of Him who stillethnbsp;the wind and the waves) they arrived safely at Matavai Bay in the islandnbsp;of Otaheite, now known by the name of � Tahiti,� after a quick andnbsp;prosperous voyage. They were very well received by the natives, whonbsp;brought them abundance of food, and were friendly to their landing, andnbsp;taking up their abode with them ; in consequence of which eighteennbsp;missionaries, five women, and two children established themselves innbsp;Tahiti, while the remainder of the missionaries proceeded, some to Tongataboo (one of the Friendly Islands), and some to St. Christina, one ofnbsp;the Marquesas. Tlie house that the natives assigned to the use of thenbsp;missionaries in Tahiti, is said to have been built by Pomare, the latenbsp;king�s father, for Captain Bligh of the ship Bounty, whom he expectednbsp;to return and settle upon the island. It was found large enough tonbsp;contain a small chapel, a library, a store-room, and a room for the surgeon and his medicines, besides small partitions for each of the missionaries. They found one or two Europeans who had resided for many

* Captain Wilson�s history is a very striking one. He was one of the officers cruelly confined in the � Black Hole� at Calcutta ; and he was several times in the midst of remarkable dangers. Yet all this time his heart was not turned to God, nor did he givenbsp;up his infidel opinions till after his return from India. He was a man wonderfully raisednbsp;up of the Almighty, and made a new creature by his Holy Spirit, and thus admirablynbsp;fitted to assume the command in this novel and interesting undertaking. See Brown�snbsp;� History of Missions.�

years on the island, who were able to act as interpreters ; and the missionaries were not long before they began to address the Tahitians on the subject of Religion, to which they listened with great attention, andnbsp;professed to be pleased with what they heard, saying, � it was verynbsp;good.�

The success attending this first voyage of the Duff, and the landing of the missionaries at Tahiti, presents a striking contrast to the eventsnbsp;which followed in the history of this mission, and afford a lesson (asnbsp;Mr. Brown, in his History of Missions, observes,) to those who are inclined to be fascinated with first appearances : � In the South Sea mission, when man spake as if he would carry all before him, little wasnbsp;effected,�when he found he could accomplish nothing, much wasnbsp;done.� *

Upon the return of the Duff to England much energy and zeal were manifested by the Societ)', and so great was the eagerness to assist andnbsp;join this mission, that in little more than two months the ship was readynbsp;for another voyage, and again set sail for the Pacific with twenty-ninenbsp;missionaries on board, five of whom were ordained to the ministry, thenbsp;Rev. Mr, Howell of Knaresborough, being the appointed superintendantnbsp;of the mission. The letter of instructions they carried out from thenbsp;directors of the London Missionary Society, displays much good sense,nbsp;with extensive information and calm consideration upon the subject ;nbsp;although it is probable they little expected the difficulties for which theynbsp;were thus unknowingly endeavouring to make provision.f Many andnbsp;great, indeed, were the trials which the mission, thus prosperously andnbsp;confidently commenced, was afterwards called upon to endure. Thenbsp;Duff during its second voyage was captured by a French privateer offnbsp;the coast of South America, and after many hardships and trials, thenbsp;missionaries again found their way to England. Meanwhile, very soonnbsp;after Captain Wilson�s departure from Tahiti, in order to return home,nbsp;the natives began to plunder and rob the missionary settlements, innbsp;consequence of their being discontented with the missionaries, fromnbsp;their failure to cure some of their countrymen, whom they said thenbsp;missionaries had killed. Four of the missionaries were next personallynbsp;attacked and ill-treated, on account of their having gone in search ofnbsp;two run-away sailors, who had been secreted by the natives from onnbsp;board an English ship, the Nautilus, which touched at Tahiti for refreshments. All these disasters induced eleven out of the eighteen missionaries remaining in the island, to determine on setting sail in the Nautilusnbsp;for Port Jackson ; but it is worthy of remark that those who quitted

their post met with severer trials and dangers than the seven who remained behind, and one of their number was cruelly murdered at Paramatta by an English convict. Civil war then broke out among the Tahitians, and when that was over, the missionaries had to lament thenbsp;bad conduct and subsequent untimely death of another of their littlenbsp;band, who had been guilty of marrying a native woman, and was innbsp;consequence excommunicated by his brethren.

In May 1800, before intelligence of these painful events could reach England, twelve more missionaries sailed from thence for Tahiti, in anbsp;convict ship,�two of whom were carried off by a fever before theynbsp;reached their destination. Dreadful wars prevailed at this time in Tahiti among the native tribes, and the king asked the missionaries if theynbsp;would fight for them ? This they refused to do, saying, they shouldnbsp;not fight, unless to defend themselves in their own habitations. Theynbsp;now began to study the Tahitian language, in which task they met withnbsp;many difficulties, owing to the peculiarities of its structure and sound,nbsp;�its words containing a great number of vowels, and many appearingnbsp;to have the same pronunciation, differing widely in their meaning.nbsp;Ever since their arrival in the island, the missionaries had endeavourednbsp;by conversation and other means, to disseminate among the nativesnbsp;some knowledge of Christianity. Some listened attentively, whilenbsp;others appeared extremely careless, and acted in a very disorderly manner. It seemed next to impossible to convince them of the nature ofnbsp;the soul, for they considered it as something without them, residing innbsp;the other world, and visiting them only at certain seasons, as in dreaming. One evil very prevalent among them was the taking the names ofnbsp;Jehovah and Jesus Christ in vain, though they were often cautionednbsp;against it. They asserted that Jesus was a God of no power, and thatnbsp;their idol Oroo was the mighty God,�that the God of the Europeansnbsp;was not a good God ; in proof of which they alleged the disorders introduced among them by our sailors, and the shipwreck of the Norfolk,nbsp;a vessel lately lost upon the island. Many of them indeed acquired considerable knowledge of the doctrines of the Gospel, but their heartsnbsp;remained unsanctified and their conduct unchanged. They were excessively bigotted to their own superstitions and idolatry, and said that ifnbsp;they embraced the Christian religion their own gods would kill them.nbsp;In 1803, Pomare the king died, and his son assumed his name and succeeded his father on the throne. The missionaries now commencednbsp;instructing the children, but found the difficulties of the undertakingnbsp;very great, as they were of wandering independent habits, and theirnbsp;parents thought the missionaries were their debtors, and ought to paynbsp;them for submitting to instruction. Notwithstanding this, in 1807,

King Potnare had learnt to read and write his own language (in the English character) and addressed a letter to the missionaries, askingnbsp;them to remain in his island. In the end of the year 1808, six of thenbsp;missionaries, after labouring ten years with little or no appearance ofnbsp;success, (as regarded the conversion of the natives) left Tahiti andnbsp;retired to the island of Huaheine. They thought it probable that warnbsp;would soon break out again in Tahiti, as great quantities of musketsnbsp;and gunpowder had been introduced into the island by Europeannbsp;ships in barter for provisions. Upon Pomare wishing to get thesenbsp;into his own hands, a rebellion was raised against him among thenbsp;natives. War ensued, and in October 1809 the property and dwellings of the missionaries were all destroyed. Upon this, they left thenbsp;islands and retired to New South Wales, with the exception of Mr.nbsp;Hayward, who was left at Huaheine, and Mr. Nott, who remained atnbsp;Tahiti. Thus terminated (to all human appearance) a mission, whichnbsp;though it had excited at first such mighty expectations, had long beennbsp;considered by the Christian world as a kind of forlorn hope.* The missionaries had not been long in New South Wales before they felt anbsp;wish to return and resume their labours in Tahiti ; but the war notnbsp;being yet ended there, five of them sailed, in 1811, to Eimeo, a neighbouring island. While here, Pomare, who hitherto had shown no desire for religious instruction, came to them and asked for baptism,nbsp;expressing his conviction of the truth and efficacy of the Gospel. Hisnbsp;conduct appeared sincere, and his example in renouncing the religion ofnbsp;* his ancestors and embracing Christianity, produced, as might be expected, a powerful sensation in Tahiti. Instructions which had lainnbsp;dormant, and convictions which had been stifled for years, now appearednbsp;to revive. Many of the people began to inquire for themselves ; andnbsp;some, notwithstanding the scoffs and derision of their countrvmen,nbsp;united together of their own accord, in a meeting for prayer. Thenbsp;priest of Eimeo, where the missionaries resided, publicly committed hisnbsp;god to the flames, and others followed his example and destroyed theirnbsp;morais, or temples.f In 1815, the idolatrous chiefs in Tahiti, provoked

' Great and sore had been their trials and hardships. The London Missionary Society had directed the Rev. S. Marsden to expend for the mission annually the sum of .�'200,nbsp;but he had not been able to find a vessel to carry out the stores thus purchased, and thenbsp;missionaries were five years without letters from England, without shoes to their feet,nbsp;or scarcely decent clothes to put on, and all their luxuries and comforts, such as tea andnbsp;sugar, were gone. Sec Ellis�s � Polynesian Researches,� vol. i. p. 130.

�h Mr. Ellis informs us, Pomare was the first convert to Christianity in the island of Tahiti. He made a profession of belief in the true God and the only Saviour in 1812,nbsp;and there is every reason to believe that, according to the knowledge he had, he wasnbsp;sincere.

by the spreading of Christianity, united in a confederacy to check the progress of, what seemed to them, so alarming an evil, but they werenbsp;defeated, and peace was at length restored, and Pomare invited to returnnbsp;to Tahiti. A few days after his landing here, the heathen party, takingnbsp;advantage of the Sabbath, when the king and the other converts werenbsp;assembled for divine worship, came upon them in a body, and furiouslynbsp;attacked them. The Christians were in a manner prepared for this,�nbsp;having their arms with them, and a battle ensued, in which the principal heathen chief was killed, and his party routed. Pomare was sonbsp;lenient and forbearing to the conquered party, that they were strucknbsp;with his conduct, and unanimously declared they would no longer trustnbsp;to their gods, who had deceived them, and sought their ruin, but wouldnbsp;embrace the new religion, which must needs be good, since it taughtnbsp;its votaries so much mildness and forbearance. Pomare was now, bynbsp;universal consent, established in the government of the whole of Tahitinbsp;and its dependencies, which he had nearly lost by the rebellion of hisnbsp;subjects, and idolatry was now completely abolished both in Tahiti andnbsp;Eimeo. The Morals were demolished, and the gods destroyed, humannbsp;sacrifices and the murder of infants were abolished, and the great Godnbsp;Oroo, (a shapeless log of wood) about which the Tahitians had a fewnbsp;years ago gone to war, was set up in Pomare�s kitchen to hang basketsnbsp;of food upon, a very despicable use in the eyes of a Tahitian. Pomare�snbsp;family gods were presented to the missionaries to send to England, thatnbsp;the people there might see what senseless blocks the Tahitians had oncenbsp;worshipped. They were lodged in the Museum of the London Mis- *nbsp;sionary Society, trophies of the triumph of Christianity in the Georgia inbsp;islands, and calculated to awaken the deepest pity for those immortalnbsp;beings, who could make such monstrous figures the objects of theirnbsp;confidence and worship.

This extraordinary revolution extended in a short time to the islands of Huaheine, Raiatea, Taha, Borabora, and Rurutu,�whose inhabitants all threw away their idols and avowed themselves the worshippersnbsp;of Jehovah. Captain Hervey of the brig Governor Macquarie, touching soon afterwards at Raivaivai, an island about four hundred milesnbsp;south-east of Tahiti, was surprised to find the natives assembling together for divine worship in a devout and orderly manner on the Sabbath, and upon inquiry learnt that king Pomare had been there twonbsp;years previously, to make peace between two contending parties in thenbsp;island, and had then introduced Christianity. So great was the changenbsp;produced in the Society Islands by the renouncing of idolatry by thenbsp;natives, that in 1817 there were sixty-seven places of worship in Tahiti,nbsp;and twenty in Eimeo. Family worship was established in almost every

house, and secret prayer was the constant practice of the natives. Their strictness in observing the Sabbath was also very remarkable, and theynbsp;would even cook their victuals on the Saturday, to avoid doing the leastnbsp;business on the Lord�s day.* In the Missionary Report for 1819, wenbsp;find that the Missionary-schools were well attended both by adults andnbsp;children, arid the. art of reading and writing was being rapidly and extensively diffused. Pomare issued orders that school-houses should benbsp;erected in every district of Tahiti and Eimeo, and that the best instructed of the natives should be employed in teaching others. Thenbsp;acquiring the language had been found by the missionaries to be annbsp;exceedingly difficult and tedious task ; for the natives had no alphabetnbsp;even, and nothing like a grammar or help of any kind had ever beennbsp;prepared. By the year 1817, they had translated an abridgment of thenbsp;Old and New Testament, a book of Hymns, and a Catechism, and thenbsp;Gospel of St. Luke. The first edition of the latter was sold for threenbsp;gallons of cocoa-nut-oil ; and though three thousand copies were thusnbsp;distributed, yet the natives were much disappointed that no more werenbsp;to be had. A native who possessed a book was seldom seen without it,nbsp;except when at work, and they would sit in circles under the shade ofnbsp;some spreading tree, while one read aloud to the rest in their own language the wonderful works of God.f

In Tahiti, so lately the seat of the most cruel and degrading superstitions, a Missionary Society was about this time set on foot by King Pomare, who at the first meeting of its members reminded the assemblednbsp;natives how large a portion of their time had hitherto been spent in worshipping idols�how large a part of their property had been consecratednbsp;to their false gods�and how many lives had been sacrificed to theirnbsp;honour ; and all this, said he, was done for what was no God, beingnbsp;generally nothing more than a piece of wood or a cocoa-nut-husk ! Henbsp;contrasted how little they were now called upon to give in the service ofnbsp;the true God, with what they used to spend in the service of idolatry,nbsp;and said, though they had no money, yet they might give pigs, arrowroot, cocoa-nut-oil, and cotton, �to buy money.� He insisted, however,nbsp;that there should be no compulsion�that what was given should benbsp;given voluntarily, and that those who did not contribute, should not benbsp;evil spoken of on that account. J

* In 1817 the first printing-press was set up by the missionaries at the Society Islands ; and we read in Ellis�s � Polynesian Researches� a most interesting account ofnbsp;the king of Tahiti himself printing the two first sheets of the first book ever printednbsp;there.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; See Brown's � History of Missions,� pp, 2.5.5�323.

of the earth, rendered the children of Tahiti and the surrounding islands very independent of their parents, and gave them very roving habits,nbsp;and in consequence they were undei* no subjection, and could not benbsp;easily collected together for instruction. The same causes producednbsp;idleness and indolence among the people generally ; for men would notnbsp;readily work for that of which they felt no need. To create, therefore,nbsp;among them artificial wants, was found the only means of forming innbsp;them habits of industry ; and for this purpose the missionaries taughtnbsp;them to make clothes, and hats, and bonnets for themselves, and endeavoured to introduce the cultivation and manufacture of sugar on thenbsp;islands, as well as of coffee and cotton. These failed at first, from ill-designing Europeans telling the natives that should the sugar-worksnbsp;succeed, people would come from beyond sea, and seize their lands,nbsp;and make slaves of the natives. Notwithstanding, in the island ofnbsp;Raiatea a spirit of improvement was kindled, and the natives learnt tonbsp;build themselves neat substantial houses, and numerous articles of furniture ; and also built, with the assistance of the missionaries, twonbsp;bridges of considerable extent, besides making roads, and well-constructed boats in the European fashion.

In May, 1819, was exhibited in Tahiti the interesting spectacle of a king giving a code of laws to his people, who, like himself, were latelynbsp;savages and heathens. The code consisted of eighteen articles, guardingnbsp;against crime, and making provision for the various relationships of life.nbsp;They chiefly related to murder, theft, stolen goods, lost property. Sabbath-breaking, rebellion, marriage, adultery, and other crimes. Thisnbsp;code was introduced in the following manner :�� Pomare, by the gracenbsp;of God, king of Tahiti, Eimeo, and all surrounding lands, to all hisnbsp;faithful subjects, greeting. In the name of the true God. God, in hisnbsp;mercy, has sent his word among us ; we have embraced this word thatnbsp;we may be saved. We desire to regard the commandments he hasnbsp;given us. In order therefore that our conduct may become like thenbsp;conduct of those who love God, we make known unto you the followingnbsp;laws of Tahiti.� Other codes were also adopted by the king and chiefsnbsp;of Raiatea and Taha ; they consisted of twenty-five articles, the last ofnbsp;which institutes trial by jury.

Pomare, king of Tahiti, died in December, 1821. This prince was full six feet two inches high ; he possessed a capacious mind, and wasnbsp;unrivalled among his countrymen for knowledge ; his temper was reserved and gloomy ; he was fond of power, and wished to have thenbsp;persons and property of his subjects entirely at his own disposal. Henbsp;inherited from his father a partiality for foreigners, and was always thenbsp;friend of the missionaries ; but he was more averse than his countrymen

to adopt European customs. He was much feared by his subjects, and was eminently useful in bringing- about the great religious change innbsp;these islands.* With respect to his religious character, little is said bynbsp;the missionaries ; and his baptism was long delayed by them, as he wasnbsp;in the habit of indulging in the sin of drunkenness. Previous to hisnbsp;death, the London Missionary Society sent a deputation, consisting of thenbsp;Rev. Mr. Tyerman of the Isle of Wight, and George Bennett, Esq., ofnbsp;Sheffield, to visit their missions throughout the world, who, in the coursenbsp;of their travels, touched at the Society Islands, and were both surprisednbsp;and dehghted to witness the change that had taken place on thesenbsp;islands in a civil, moral, and religious point of view. All the six islandsnbsp;of this group had embraced Christianity at the time of Pomare�s death,nbsp;and native teachers had been placed in the Hervey Islands, whose inhabitants had, in 1820, renounced idolatry.

It was difficult to obtain the accurate number of baptized natives, in the islands which had now been partially christianized, but they are supposednbsp;by the missionaries to have been at this time not fewer than 4,000, upwards of one-half of whom were adults. The Rev. W. Brown, authornbsp;of the History of Missions, draws up the account of this mission to thenbsp;South Sea Islands in 1823, in the following words :�� There is no doubtnbsp;that much of what took place in Tahiti and the neighbouring islands, wasnbsp;only in profession ; but yet we have reason to believe there is also muchnbsp;of real piety. In this, as in every other part of the world where Christianity has been established, the number of those who profess it is farnbsp;greater than that of those who feel the power of religion. Probablynbsp;what took place in various countries of Europe at the Reformation furnishes the justest and most correct picture of what took place lately innbsp;the islands of the Pacific Ocean. While the mass of the populationnbsp;threw off the yoke of Popery, the great body of the people were farnbsp;from possessing a correct knowledge of the principles of Christianity,nbsp;and still less did they experience their purifying influence. It was onlynbsp;a comparatively small number of individuals, who were enlightened bynbsp;the Holy Spirit, believed in Jesus Christ as the only Saviour, andnbsp;brought forth fruits meet for repentance.� -f

An attempt was made in 1797, by some of the first mis.sionaries who sailed from London in the Duff, to establish Christianity in Tongataboo,nbsp;one of the Friendly IslEinds ; but these missionaries failed in theirnbsp;design, partly in consequence of their projects being frustrated by irreligious Europeans, most probably runaway convicts, who were foundnbsp;established on the island, and who often prejudiced the ignorant nativesnbsp;against the missionaries, and instigated them to attack and rob them.

* See Brown�s � History of Missions.� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f Ibid. p. 3.3S.

The disastrous wars and brutal and artful conduct of some of the chiefs, also rendered it impossible for the missionaries to prosper in their endeavours to benefit these islanders.

The mission to the Marquesas came to a termination even sooner than that of Tongataboo, for only two missionaries were landed on thenbsp;islands by Captain Wilson, commander of the Duff, and of them onenbsp;gave up the work immediately, and left his companion before the Duffnbsp;sailed on its departure from the islands. The remaining missionarynbsp;suffered very greatly from hunger and other hardships, and returned tonbsp;England in 1799.*

In referring again to Tahiti, for many years the principal scene of missionary labours in the South Seas, we may remark, that for the firstnbsp;ten or fifteen years, affairs were so very unpropitious regarding the mission, that its friends in England urged its being abandoned altogether. Anbsp;few however opposed this measure, among whom were Dr. Haweis, andnbsp;the missionary Williams� beloved pastor, the Rev. Matthew Wilks, whonbsp;said � that he would rather sell his garments from his back than thatnbsp;the mission should be given up ; � and proposed that a season of special prayer for the divine blessing should be observed ; which was agreednbsp;to, and letters of encouragement were written and despatched to thenbsp;suffering missionaries ; and while the vessel that carried these lettersnbsp;was on her way to Tahiti, another ship was conveying to England thenbsp;news of the entire overthrow of idolatry in the Society Islands, as wellnbsp;as the very rejected idols of their inhabitants ! These events occurrednbsp;about 1815. Thus was fulfilled the gracious promise, � Before theynbsp;call, I will answer, and while they are yet speaking, I wiU hear.�nbsp;� From that time to this,� writes Mr. Williams, in 1838, � one continuednbsp;series of successes has attended the labours of the London Missionarynbsp;Society among the South Sea Islands, so much so, that there is not anynbsp;group or single island of any importance, within two thousand miles ofnbsp;Tahiti, in any direction, to which the glad tidings of salvation have notnbsp;been conveyed.� t

The knowledge of Christianity was first planted in the three islands of Tahiti, Eimeo, and Huaheine. It was introduced nextnbsp;into Raiatea, which island was the principal scene of Williams�s labours ;nbsp;and, in 1820, its blessings were conveyed southwards to the island ofnbsp;Rurutu, one of the Austral Islands, in the following remarkable manner.nbsp;The people of this island had been visited by a most dreadful fever,nbsp;which had carried off great numbers, and their chief, thinking their godnbsp;was angry with them, determined, with some of his followers and sur-

* See Brown�s � History of Missions,� p. 36!). See Williams�s � Narrative,� p. 13.

viving people, to leave the island in search of some spot where � the gods would not devour them.� In their course they were overtakennbsp;by a violent storm, and driven on shore in one of the Society Islands,nbsp;which proved to be Raiatea. Here, upon landing, they were astonishednbsp;at finding the natives dressed in the European fashion, and living innbsp;neat white cottages, employing themselves in several useful arts ; andnbsp;when they beheld them assembled for divine worship on the Sabbath,nbsp;singing the praises of Jehovah, and listening with attention to the message of mercy delivered by the white strangers, they were filled withnbsp;wonder, and at once became convinced of the superiority of the newnbsp;religion ; and when they were ready to depart to return to their ownnbsp;island, the chief said to the missionaries, � I cannot go to the land ofnbsp;darkness without a light in my hand ; � by which he meant somenbsp;person to instruct him and his people in the truths of the gospel. Twonbsp;teachers from Raiatea were therefore sent with him ; and, in about anbsp;month, the boat which had conveyed them returned, conveying thenbsp;idols of the Rurutuans, which were sent away bound, after having beennbsp;condemned and given up. One of these idols, Mr. Williams, in hisnbsp;� Narrative,� mentions as being very large, and not only being bedecked with little gods all over him on the outside, but that a door wasnbsp;discovered at his hack, on opening which he was found to be hollow,nbsp;and filled with other small gods, no less than twenty-four of which werenbsp;taken out and exhibited to the Christian Raiateans.*

In 1819�20, the natives erected at Raiatea, and also at Huahine, a remarkable neat and spacious chapel. The account given by Mr. Ellisnbsp;of their assiduity and cleverness in completing such a work, is verynbsp;striking ; these buildings were a hundred feet long, and sixty wide, thenbsp;sides were fourteen feet high, and in the centre not less than thirtynbsp;feet ; the posts and rafters were beautifully ornamented, and, withnbsp;the pulpit, desk, and communion-table, all made of different-colourednbsp;wood, presented a very neat and handsome appearance. The roof wasnbsp;thatched with pandanus-leaves, and the inside of it richly and ingeniously ornamented with finely-woven variegated matting, ingeniouslynbsp;wound round the polished rafters of dark wood, which had a verynbsp;striking and beautiful appearance. The interior was neatly fitted upnbsp;with pews and benches, and held, on the day it was opened, 2400nbsp;persons. All classes cheerfully assisted in building these places of worship, and the King of Huahine might be seen every day in the midst ofnbsp;his chiefs and subjects, assisting and encouraging them in their undertak ing.f

See Ellis�s � Polynesian Researches,� pp. 84, 85. The last native Christian chapel

Encouraged by the success of the introduction of the gospel in Rurutu, Mr. Williams, in 1821, carried two native teachers with him to the islandnbsp;of Aitutaki, the most westerly of the Hervey group, when he was on hisnbsp;way to visit New South Wales, for the benefit of his health. He foundnbsp;the natives here tatooed from head to foot, and painted with pipe-claynbsp;and red and yellow ochre, while others were smeared aU over withnbsp;charcoal, and in this state were shouting and dancing, and exhibitingnbsp;all the wild features of savage life. The teachers were left upon thenbsp;island, and Mr. Williams proceeded on his voyage. Eighteen monthsnbsp;afterwards, as he was sailing in search of the island of Rarotonga, ofnbsp;which he had heard much, he landed at Aitutaki, and was no less surprised than delighted to find that the natives had all embraced Christianity, had burnt their maraes, and had erected houses for the teachers,nbsp;and a commodious and substantial chapel, two hundred feet long andnbsp;thirty feet wide ; and were only waiting for a European teacher to opennbsp;it for divine worship. Many of the Aitutakians were now neatlynbsp;dressed, and the contrast in every particular to their appearance whennbsp;he had visited them before, was very striking. There were some natives of Rarotonga residing at Aitutaki who had embraced Christianity ;nbsp;and though they dissuaded them from their purpose, by saying theirnbsp;countrymen were cannibals, and would destroy them, yet Mr. Williamsnbsp;persisted in his design of visiting this island, and took one of the nativenbsp;teachers with him who had been before left at Aitutaki. They werenbsp;disappointed in not finding Rarotonga, and sailed for Mangala, anothernbsp;of the Hervey Islands, where they attempted to land teachers, but werenbsp;foiled in their efforts ; though a short time afterwards, when the warlike spirit of the people had been subdued by a fever, they thankfullynbsp;received the gospel. Mr. Williams and his party next visited Atiu,nbsp;Mauke, and Mitiaro, three other islands of the Hervey group, and thenbsp;account of the introduction of the gospel among their inhabitants isnbsp;described in a most lively and interesting manner in � the Narrative ofnbsp;Missionary Enterprises.� On leaving Atiu, the missionaries set sailnbsp;again in search of Rarotonga, which, after much difficulty they at lengthnbsp;discovered, and were unexpectedly received by its people in a friendlynbsp;manner ; notwithstanding which they were almost obliged to abandonnbsp;their project, for the chiefs seized on the teachers� wives, and eachnbsp;wanted to become possessed of them ; and they would have certainlynbsp;been tom in pieces by these savages, had not the wives of two Raro-tongan Christians, who had been converted while on a visit to one of thenbsp;that Mr. Ellis ever entered was at Rurutu. Upon asking the natives, who were showingnbsp;him over it, where they procured the highly-polished rails to the stairs leading up to thenbsp;pulpit, they replied, that they had made them of the handles of warriors' spears!

Society Islands, and who were now returning home with the missionaries, interfered in their behalf ; and at last it was found prudent to leave onlynbsp;one solitary individual (the old Aitutaki native teacher) at Rarotonga. Innbsp;1827, Mr. Williams again revisited this island, taking Mr. and Mrs.nbsp;Pitman with him, who intended settling there as missionaries. The inhabitants had by this time all embraced Christianity, were neatly clothed,nbsp;and were preparing to build a chapel six hundred feet long. The daynbsp;after Mr. Williams arrived, a large concourse of natives assembled, and,nbsp;walking in procession, dropped at the feet of the missionaries fourteennbsp;immense idols, the smaUest of which was five yards in length. Mr.nbsp;Pitman, thus placed at Rarotonga in 1827, has ever since continued tonbsp;preach the gospel to a numerous Christian people.

This same year (1827) Tuahine, the native teacher of Raiatea, died, during Mr. Williams�s absence at Rarotonga. He was one of thenbsp;first natives of Tahiti who were converted to the truth. He was verynbsp;useful as a teacher, and also greatly assisted Mr. Nott and Mr. Williams in translating the scriptures into the Tahitian language.*

It is a remarkable fact, that in no island of any importance was Christianity introduced without a war ; at the same time it is alsonbsp;observable that in every instance the heathen party were the aggressors.nbsp;The circumstances attending the establishment of the gospel in Raiatea,nbsp;are so remarkable that we will give our readers a very short sketch ofnbsp;the facts. When most of the chiefs of the Society Islands assemblednbsp;to reinstate Pomare in his dominions, Tamatoa, the chief of Raiatea,nbsp;was also among the number, and during his stay in the island of Tahiti,nbsp;he became a convert to the truth ; and, on his return to his own island,nbsp;took with him�not the mangled bodies of the victims slain in battle,nbsp;to offer to their false gods, whose protection he had invoked beforenbsp;leaving his own country�but the blessed gospel of peace. He was metnbsp;on the beach by the priests of the island, who were vociferating thenbsp;name of their god, and hoping he had returned laden with victims ; tonbsp;whom Tamatoa made answer : � There are no victims�we are allnbsp;praying people, and have become worshippers of Jehovah, the truenbsp;God ; � and holding up their books, cried, � These are the trophiesnbsp;with which we have returned.� Soon afterwards a meeting was convened, and the people informed of what had happened at Tahiti, and ofnbsp;the introduction of the new religion there by the missionaries. Theynbsp;were then invited by Tamatoa to follow their example ; to which proposition about a third of the people agreed. Shortly after this, Tamatoa was taken seriously ill, and every effort to restore him havingnbsp;failed, it was proposed by one of the Christians to destroy Oro, the

great national idol, and set fire to the marae, suggesting .that perhaps Jehovah was angry with them for not having done so before. Thisnbsp;advice was speedily taken, and Oro and his temple were committed tonbsp;the flames. The heathen party, at this treatment of their god, were so.nbsp;enraged, that they immediately made war upon the Christians. A largenbsp;army of heathens, with flying banners, were about to land in a shoutingnbsp;tumultuous manner, and attack the Christian encampment, which wasnbsp;situated on a small peninsula. At this juncture, one of the leaders ofnbsp;the latter party offered to take a small band of followers and attack thenbsp;heathens while in the confusion of landing. The king agreed to thisnbsp;plan, and said, � Before you go, let us unite in prayer.� Men, women,nbsp;and children then knelt down outside their stone-encampment, and thenbsp;king implored the God of Jacob quot; to cover their head in the day ofnbsp;battle ; � and when his prayer was ended, and they were ready tonbsp;depart, he added, �Now go, and may the presence of Jesus be withnbsp;you ! � Taking a circuitous path behind some brushwood, the chiefnbsp;and his little band arrived opposite the place where the heathen partynbsp;was landing, and extended themselves as far as they could, making nonbsp;noise until they emerged from the bushes. The stratagem proved mostnbsp;successful, for the heathens were seized with consternation at beingnbsp;thus met by the enemy ; and throwing down their arms, they fled fornbsp;their lives. The Christians took gi�eat numbers prisoners, but sparednbsp;all their lives. Astonished at the kind and merciful treatment theynbsp;received from their conquerors, the heathens exclaimed, � WewiU nevernbsp;again worship the gods who would not protect us in the hour of danger !nbsp;We were four times the number of the praying people, and yet theynbsp;have conquered us with the greatest ease ; Jehovah is the true God ! �nbsp;When the chief of the island of Tahua, who had led the heathens tonbsp;battle, was brought into the presence of Tamatoa, he exclaimed, � Amnbsp;I dead ? � � No, brother,� the king replied, � You are saved bynbsp;Jesus, and the influence of the religion of mercy, which we have embraced.� *

In 1824, Mr. Wilhams resolved to visit some of the more distant groups of islands in the vast Pacific ; and for the accomplishment of thisnbsp;purpose he proceeded to build a ship with such tools and materials asnbsp;he was possessed of ; and in this little vessel he sailed to several, of thenbsp;islands, to see how their affairs were going on, previous to his voyagenbsp;to the Marquesas in 1834, to endeavour to resume the mission at thosenbsp;islands.

the Samoas, or Navigators� Islands, where Christianity was introduced in 1831 ; and while fitting out at Raiatea for this voyage, the missionnbsp;was visited by one of Her Britannic Majesty�s frigates (the Seringapa-tam), commanded by the Hon. Capt. Waldegrave, from whom thenbsp;Christians received many kind attentions. Pomare, who had succeedednbsp;her father as queen of Tahiti, with her husband, mother, and aunt, werenbsp;at this time on a visit to Tamatoa, the old king of Raiatea, and all dinednbsp;on board the Seringapatam, and a. number of presents were given to thenbsp;captain, as an expression of the pleasure the king felt in welcoming himnbsp;and his otficers to their island. The commander kindly accepted theirnbsp;gifts, and made them some valuable presents in return. The Queennbsp;Pomare was dressed in the English fashion, and aU the native chiefsnbsp;behaved in the most becoming manner. Mr. Williams observes in hisnbsp;� Narrative � that the countenance of English naval officers had oftennbsp;been of great advantage in the prosecution of their arduous labours innbsp;civilizing and Christianizing the islands of the Pacific, but especially innbsp;counteracting the base falsehoods and vile misrepresentations of runaway sailors and others, who have done so much mischief in prejudicingnbsp;the minds of the people in England against the mission.

For a description of the degree of Christian knowledge to which these islanders had now attained, we refer our readers to that most interestingnbsp;volume entitled � Narrative of Missionary Enterprize, by Rev. J. Williams,� where (at p. 172) the interview between Captain Waldegravenbsp;and the converted chiefs of Raiatea is described at length. The answersnbsp;of the Christian natives to Capt. W.�s questions, on the Divine origin ofnbsp;the Bible, the prophetic books of scripture, the offices of the Saviour,nbsp;and the nature and resurrection of the soul, were all highly satisfactory,nbsp;and evinced very powerfully that their conversion was indeed the worknbsp;of the Holy Spirit.

The sinall islands of Mitiaro and Mauke, had never been visited by any European vessel, when the � Messenger of Peace� conveyed the gladnbsp;tidings of the Gospel to their shores in 1823. The next vessel that visitednbsp;them, was his Majesty�s Frigate � Blonde,� commanded by the Hon.nbsp;Capt. Lord Byron, who was conveying to their own country the bodiesnbsp;of the King and Queen of the Sandwich islands, who died in Englandnbsp;in 1824. Lord Byron bore a most decided testimony to the power ofnbsp;Christianity to subdue the savage hearts of man, and *' overturn thenbsp;superstition of ages.� * In 1830, Mr. Williams touched at Savagenbsp;Island, which is half way between the Society and the Navigator�snbsp;group ; he found the people so extremely wild and barbarous and

degraded in their habits, that he could not even persuade a native teacher to land on the island ; but Christianity has since been introduced here,nbsp;as well as at Wellis s and Keppel's Islands, which are also solitarynbsp;islands, apart from any cluster. Upon arriving at Tongataboo, Mr.nbsp;Williams received a kind welcome from the Wesleyan Missionaries whonbsp;were settled there. In his Narrative he gives us the history of Taufaahau,nbsp;the Christian chief of the Hapai group, who appears to have been anbsp;most extraordinary man, of superior discernment and great resolutionnbsp;of character. From his youth he is said to have despised the wholenbsp;system of idol-worship, and having heard that the natives of Tongataboonbsp;had renounced idolatry, he determined to visit that island, and form hisnbsp;own opinion of Christianity, or the � new religion,� as it was called.nbsp;He returned to his own dominions, fully persuaded of its truth, and setnbsp;to work with great energy to establish it among his people. Manynbsp;opposed him, but he drove his pigs into their temples, and hung upnbsp;their gods by the neck to the rafters of the sacred building. He afterwards induced Mr. and Mrs. Thomas, of the Wesleyan Society to settlenbsp;at his group, and sent his own canoe to fetch them from Tongataboo.nbsp;This interesting chieftain, through the blessing of God upon his wisenbsp;and resolute conduct, gained a most complete victory over the superstitions of his people. We will notice one instance of his sincerenbsp;Christian principle, and that was his emancipating all his slaves, because he heard from the missionaries that slavery was inconsistent withnbsp;Christianity.*

It was in August, 1830, that the cloud-capped mountains of the beautiful island of Savaii, one of the Navigator�s group, were first viewed by the indefatigable Williams and his companions. They took with them anbsp;chief belonging to these islands, whom they had found at the Friendly islands, and likewise two native teachers. The chief was of great assistancenbsp;to the missionaries in their work, and they were constrained to admirenbsp;the goodness of God in providentially bringing before them an individualnbsp;whose intelligence and piety so admirably fitted him to advance thenbsp;objects they had in view. This chief had told the missionaries duringnbsp;the voyage, a great deal of the terror occasioned on the island by thenbsp;chief Tama-lainga, in whom was supposed to reside the Spirit of theirnbsp;Gods, and who he said would never allow of the introduction ofnbsp;Christianity. But what was the joy of the missionaries and of Faueea,nbsp;the Savaiian chief, himself, when on nearing the shore, the people criednbsp;out, � He is dead ! he is dead ! he was killed only ten days ago ! �nbsp;Faueea gave his countrymen to understand who the missionaries were.

and what was their object in visiting their island, and assembling them upon the quarter-deck of the little missionary ship, he informed themnbsp;of the number of islands which had become Christian, naming Tahiti,nbsp;Rarotonga, Tongataboo, amp;c., and then specified the different advantages the inhabitants of those islands derived from the knowledge ofnbsp;this new religion, and especially that of its putting an end to their fearful wars. The people agreed that the religion must be good, if it hadnbsp;all these wonderful effects, and expressed an eager pleasure at the prospect of being instructed. The missionaries were treated by them withnbsp;the greatest possible respect, and the air was rent by their affectionatenbsp;salutations, as they exclaimed, � Ole alofa i le alii,�� Great is ournbsp;affection for you English chiefs.�

The name by which the native Christians called themselves at these islands was, literally rendered, � Sons of the word.� The following isnbsp;a correct translation of a prayer offered up by one of them, when setnbsp;apart as a teacher for a neighbouring island. � If we fly up to heaven,nbsp;O God, we shall find thee there ; if we dwell upon the land, thou artnbsp;there ; if we sail upon the sea, thou art there, and this affords us comfort. The king of our bodies has his subjects to whom he issues hisnbsp;orders, and if he goes with them his presence stimulates their zeal ; Onbsp;Lord, thou art the king of our spirits, thou hast issued orders to thynbsp;subjects to do a great work, thou hast commanded them to go into allnbsp;the world and preach the gospel to every creature ; O Lord, let thynbsp;presence go with us to quicken us ! Thou hast said, thy presence shallnbsp;go with thy people even unto the end of the world ! Fulfil, O Lord, tonbsp;us this cheering promise : be to us, O Lord, the compass of salvation,nbsp;that we may escape obstructions and dangers in our work.� *

In 1831, the Wesleyan mission received a Printing Press, for their missionary stations at Tonga, and which in the course of one year andnbsp;six months struck off 29,100 copies of small books, Mr. Williams innbsp;his narrative, bears a very honourable testimony to the sterling pietynbsp;and devotedness to the cause of the Redeemer exhibited by the Wesleyan brethren at the Friendly islands.

We have thus endeavoured very briefly to show the manner in which the blessings of Christianity were introduced into the principal islands ofnbsp;the South Pacific Ocean up to 1836, since which time the Hebrides andnbsp;the Loyalty group have heard the glad sound of the gospel, and at thenbsp;Feejee Islands also Christianity has been in some measure established.nbsp;In November 1839, the devoted Missionary Williams met with his deathnbsp;on the coast of Erromanga, one of the Hebrides group, which he wasnbsp;visiting in order to proclaim the gospel to its inhabitants. The natives

at first appeared friendly, and suffered the party to land�when suddenly they showed hostile feeling, and pursuing Mr. Williams, they cruellynbsp;murdered him before he could reach the boat. His name will long benbsp;revered among these islands for his courage, perseverance, and devotedness to the work in which he was (in 1817) first permitted to engage.

In 1838, the Rev. H. Nott,* came over to England, and assisted in carrying through the press, an edition of the whole Bible in the Tahitiannbsp;language, which he had been the principal means of translating. Thenbsp;British and Foreign Bible Society were at the expense of the printing ;nbsp;they also published a pocket New Testament in Tahitian, and an editionnbsp;of the New Testament in the Rarotongan dialect. A number of booksnbsp;had been translated by Mr. Williams, and �were now printed by thenbsp;Religious Tract Society ; they were peculiarly acceptable to the natives,nbsp;and greatly increased among them a taste for reading.t

At the Navigator�s Islands in 1838, there were 23,000 natives under Christian instruction. In 1839 Mr. Pitman had proceeded to the endnbsp;of the Pentateuch, in translating the Rarotongan Old Testament. Innbsp;1840 the London Missionary Society established a seminary at Rarotonga for the education of native youths preparing for the work of thenbsp;ministry. The Report of 1840 and 1841, gives the following intelligence : � In Tahiti, and others of the Society Islands, the love of manynbsp;has waxed cold, and spiritual religion it is feared is at a low ebb. Innbsp;the Navigator�s Isles the riches of Divine grace have been abundantlynbsp;shed abroad. War has ceased, and the desire for instruction is increasing. The press is in operation, and the New Testament in thenbsp;Samoan language is completed. In 1841, a grammar of the Feejeeannbsp;language and the Gospel of St. Matthew in the same were completed,nbsp;and some of the natives could read both with ease. The Feejeeans arenbsp;cannibals, and the Wesleyan missionaries have in conseiiuence met withnbsp;many difficulties in the establishment of Christianity in these islands.nbsp;The Wesleyan Society has two institutions for the training of nativenbsp;teachers ; one at the Friendly Isles, the other at Lakemba, in the Feejeenbsp;group. The numbers in their schools, and those admitted to baptism,nbsp;are considerably on the increase.�

The London Society�s mission, as far as regards the island of Tahiti, has been brought to an unhappy close (or at least, is for the presentnbsp;suspended), in consequence of the aggressions of the French admiral.nbsp;Dupetit Thouars, who has attempted to reduce Tahiti and her queen to

* Mr. Nott was one of the first missionaries who sailed to the South Seas in the Duff; and now, after forty-two years� labour, and twenty spent in the arduous task of translating the Scriptures, he was permitted to see this chief desire of his heart accomplished.

subjection by force of arms. The light in which the directors view this event may be best understood from the following declaration, publishednbsp;in their Annual Missionary Report for 1839-40: �That the directorsnbsp;view with surprize and deep regret the measures of an unjust and oppressive character, which have been adopted by the Government ofnbsp;France, in consequence of the Tahitians having exercised the right of anbsp;free and independent people, and ejected two Roman Catholic missionaries from their shores, preferring Protestant Christianity to the corrupted faith of the Romish Church.� In 1842, the directors againnbsp;write : �We have received with feelings of the deepest sorrow andnbsp;severest reprehension, the intelligence of the unjust assumption of sovereignty by the French power in Tahiti, and the establishment of Poperynbsp;in that island by force ; and we regard the treaty by which the nativenbsp;Government was constrained to sacrifice its independence, as the solenbsp;result of extortion and violence.� The London Missionary Societynbsp;presented a memorial to her Majesty�s Government, embodying thesenbsp;sentiments, and others of the like description.

Tlie mission at the Marquesas of the London Missionary Society, which was abandoned in 1799, was resumed in 1834 ; but owing to thenbsp;ferocious wars and cannibalism of the inhabitants, and latterly to thenbsp;settling of French Roman Catholic missionaries (in 1839) at thesenbsp;islands, it has a second time been relinquished.

The American Board of Missions first established a mission at the Sandwich Islands in 1820. They had, previously to this, educatednbsp;three native youths in America, and these acted as interpreters until

they could themselves have acquired the language. It appears that one of the kings of these islands had a short time previous to the commencement of the American mission, renounced the whole system of idolatrynbsp;from views of policy. News had reached his ears of what had takennbsp;place in the Georgian and Society islands, which favoured this event,nbsp;and in a great measure prepared the way for the introduction of thenbsp;Gospel. The Americans began immediately to establish schools atnbsp;three of the principal islands, and print and translate elementary booksnbsp;and portions of the Scriptures ; and in their work were greatly assistednbsp;by the grammar of the New Zealand language, already prepared by thenbsp;Church Missionary Society, as a great resemblance exists between thenbsp;New Zealand language and that of the Sandwich Islands. In 1822,nbsp;Mr. Ellis, of the London Missionary Society, visited the American mission, and by his superior knowledge of the native language, was able tonbsp;preach to the natives without an interpreter. He resided several yearsnbsp;at the Sandwich Islands, and greatly assisted the mission. Accordingnbsp;to the Report of the American Board of Missions for 1825, the progressnbsp;of improvement in the islands had heen very encouraging. Severalnbsp;chiefs had been baptized, and walked worthy of their high calling. Anbsp;large chapel* had heen built by the natives in the island of Oahu, whithernbsp;the king of the Sandwich Isles had removed from Hawaii! in 1822, andnbsp;it had consequently become the chief seat of missionary labours : Honolulu is in this island, where the missionaries have established a schoolnbsp;for the chiefs.

In 1825, there were six stations on the island of Hawaii, and at each a church had heen erected by the natives, where public worship wasnbsp;regularly attended hy about 1600 natives. The schools at the severalnbsp;stations contained about 1000 scholars. A spelling-book and a hymn-book had been printed in the native language, and the Gospel of St.nbsp;Matthew was nearly ready for the press, and that of St. Luke was innbsp;progress.

In 1830, the schools at Hawaii amounted to 300, and the scholars to 20,000. At Oahu, they were 210 in number, and scholars 6635.�nbsp;The other smaller islands had a corresponding number of schools andnbsp;scholars in proportion to their population. In 1830, the New Testament in the Hawaiian dialect wa.s completed and printed.

* The report for 1826 states :�� Mr. Stewart saw 2,200 of the people, in one procession, bringing on their shoulders, from the mountains, the materials for building.� The chapel, when completed, held 4,000 persons.

� See � Annual Report of the American Board of Missions�' for 1831, p, 50.

we meet with the following remarks : quot; In answer to the question,� Are the Sandwich islanders a Christian nation ? we reply, obviously theynbsp;are not a nation of idolaters. The Christian religion is nominally thenbsp;religion of the nation. The principal rulers (with one single exception)nbsp;are members of the Christian Church, and all the most distinguishednbsp;and influential individuals of the nation are professedly on the side ofnbsp;truth and virtue. Spacious houses for the worship of the true Godnbsp;have been erected by the chiefs and people in the principal towns of thenbsp;islands. The Sabbath is professedly hallowed ; marriages are solemnized in a Christian manner. Temperance societies have been formed,nbsp;as in our own country ; the Holy Scriptures are anxiously desired, andnbsp;are received by the people as of Divine authority. Christianity has preceded civilization, and is leading the way to it.�

In 1832 the Queen Regent of the Sandwich Islands died. She was the kind friend and benefactress of the mission, and the faithful guardiannbsp;of the infant churches established in her islands. Evidences of hernbsp;Christian character seemed to multiply during her last sickness ; andnbsp;some of the foreign residents who before spoke lightly of her conversion,nbsp;now declared their conviction that it was genuine. She had alwaysnbsp;appeared grateful in receiving portions of the Scriptures, as they camenbsp;successively from the press ; and until her illness, when her strengthnbsp;was too much reduced to permit it, she spent much time in readingnbsp;them.* The young king who succeeded her was not equally pious,nbsp;though professing Christianity. He relaxed the reins of moral duty,nbsp;and everywhere the effect was such as might have been expected.nbsp;There was a falling oS in the schools and congregations, the sabbathnbsp;began to be profaned by sinful recreations, and not a few resumed theirnbsp;old habits of intemperance.

The American Board of Missions had twenty-three missionaries in the Sandwich Islands in 1834. At their mission-press had been printednbsp;the entire New Testament in the native language, as well as the fivenbsp;books of Moses, the book of Joshua, and the Psalms, besides an immense number of hymn-books, catechisms and tracts in the Hawaiiannbsp;dialect, and elementary books on geography, music, arithm�tic, amp;c.

In 1835 the missionaries thus write : � As evidences of the triumphs of the Cross, we could point to the reformed characters-�Keopuolani,nbsp;Opiia, Karaimoku, Kaahumanu, Naiki�and other chiefs of high rank,nbsp;who have left the church below, and are gone, we trust to join thenbsp;assembly of the blest above. Others of rank deserve to be mentioned,

who are now our fellow-helpers, and who in their habitations, dress and intercourse, appear with Christian dignity and pohteness to exert anbsp;good influence in their respective spheres. But the evidences of unfeigned piety are as clearly obvious in the poor as among the rich. Thenbsp;introduction of the Bible, of the Sabbath, of Christian marriage, and thenbsp;press, are all so many important steps towards the christianizing andnbsp;civilization of these islands, so lately sunk in the pollution and darknessnbsp;of a gross idolatry, and the fetters and chains of their taboo system.

In 1838, a considerable revival in religion took place in the islands ; the Report states that hitherto the church members had consisted chieflynbsp;of the old and the middle-aged, but now 600 young people were admitted to baptism, as well as some hundreds of others. There werenbsp;three boarding-schools estabhshed on the islands ; that for girls contained in 1838 forty-nine scholars, who were making very happy progress. Another boarding-school of twenty native girls was formed innbsp;1839. They were neatly clothed by a lady of the mission, and theirnbsp;food provided by the contributions of the people. The boys in the highnbsp;school at Lahainaluna, in the island of Maui, are instructed in reading,nbsp;writing, and arithmetic, geography, scripture history, chronology, andnbsp;church history ; and at another school for boys mention is made ofnbsp;singing and geometry, and also natural history : so that, though naturally an indolent people, they must show a great quickness of mind andnbsp;aptness for learning when roused to energy.*

The following short history of Keopuolani, a queen in one of the Sandwich islands, will serve to show the peculiar features of heathenismnbsp;among the natives, and also the manner in which Christianity was introduced into these once-benighted islands : � About the year 1806, Keopuolani was taken ill, and fears were entertained that she would not recover. A native priest was consulted, who immediately pretended tonbsp;tell the reason of her being taken ill, which was this : he had just heardnbsp;of some men who had been eating cocoa-nuts, and had thereby brokennbsp;the taboo (for in those days cocoa-nuts were forbidden by the taboonbsp;laws to be eaten by all common people, under fear of offending the gods).nbsp;The priest said, that as Keopuolani was descended from the gods, theynbsp;were offended with the men, and had therefore afflicted her with thisnbsp;sickness, from which she would never recover unless those who hadnbsp;eaten the cocoa-nuts should be offered up in sacrifice ! According tonbsp;the priest�s advice, the king, Tamehameha, ordered the men to he takennbsp;and sacrificed. These orders were obeyed, and the men quickly ob-

tained ; but before the exact time arrived for offering them up, Keopo-lani�s disorder abated, and hopes of her recovery soon entertained. Seven of the intended victims were consequently unbound, but the othernbsp;three were slain. In 1820, the American missionaries arrived at thenbsp;Sandwich Islands ; Keopuolani paid but little attention to instruction fornbsp;the first two years. Soon after which, she was visited with a long illness, which led her to think seriously about another world. In February 1823, she and her husband begged of the missionaries that theynbsp;might have a teacher to instruct them in the Christian religion, andnbsp;conduct their family devotions. They selected Tana, a native teachernbsp;from Huahine, one of the Society islands (brought there probably bynbsp;Mr. EUis of the London Missionary Society). This teacher residednbsp;with them till Keopuolani�s death. He proved a faithful teacher, andnbsp;did much (by the grace of God) to establish her in the faith of thenbsp;Gospel. One morning when a number of her people and chiefs werenbsp;standing round her, she said, � I wish you would all either retire, or elsenbsp;be silent, for I desire to pray to Jesus Christ, and must have no interruption.� She one day said to Tana, � My heart is much afraid I shallnbsp;never become a Christian.� He said, �Why, what was in the way ?�nbsp;She replied, � I think I am likely to die soon.� He replied, � Do you notnbsp;love God� Oh, yes ! I love him very much,� was her immediatenbsp;answer. At the close of the conversation, she said, �Your word I knownbsp;is true ; it is a good word, and I find I have obtained a Saviour, and anbsp;good King, Jesus Christ.� She said, at another time, �I wish now to obeynbsp;Jesus Christ, and to walk in the good way. I have had two husbands,nbsp;for we have been a people of dark hearts ; but since I thought it wrong,nbsp;I have only desired one.� She was diligent in searching for Divine truth,nbsp;and reflected seriously upon all she heard and read. The teacher foundnbsp;her one day exclaiming in great distress, while alone upon her couch :nbsp;� Oh, the punishments of wicked men ! They will cry for water, butnbsp;there will be no water�none at aU�not even a drop for their tongues.�nbsp;When conversing about the sins of her forefathers in worshipping idolsnbsp;of wood, she said, � Tlie great guilt is ours, who know the right way,nbsp;but do not walk in it.� She said one day to a chief who had fallennbsp;away and broken the Christian sabbath, � You do not love prayer ; mynbsp;heart is sorry for you, and I often weep for you alone.� In Augustnbsp;1823 she was taken seriously ill, and, on September 16, she fell asleepnbsp;in Jesus. When a person of rank died formerly in these islands, theirnbsp;bones were preserved and worshipped, and a great number of shockingnbsp;and disgusting ceremonies were performed by the people. Keopuolaninbsp;begged upon her death-bed that none of these wicked customs might benbsp;z 2

followed after she was dead. Her words were these : � Great is my love to the word of God, by which I hope my mind has been enlightened. The word of God is a true word, a good word. Jehovah is anbsp;good God ; I love him. I love Jesus Christ ; all the former gods ofnbsp;Hawaii are false. When I die, let none of the evil customs of thisnbsp;country be practised. Let not my body be disturbed. Let my burialnbsp;be after the manner of Christ�s people. Let the teachers attend, andnbsp;speak to the people at my interment.� *

* See � The Success of the Gospel in the Pacific.� Bj George Pritchard, Esq., British Consul to the Navigators� Islands, p. 22.

LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY.

POLYNESIA, OR SOUTH-SEA ISLANDS.

Georgian (or Windward) Islands, two in number, viz. :�

Tahiti .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..

Eimeo j

Society (or Leeward) Islands, four in number, viz. :�

Huahine

Baiatea Borabora

Maupiti

Hervey Islands, six in number, Rarotonga ..

Aitutaki

Atiu Mitiarenbsp;Mauti ..

Mangala

Austral Islands, five in number, viz. : Raivavai ..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;,,nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;gt;

Tubuai

Rimatara

Rurutu

Rapa

Paumotu Islands, three in number, viz. : � Taaroanbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.,nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..

Chain Island .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..

Matea nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..

Samoa, or Navigator�s Islands, four in number, viz. :�

Savaii .

Upolu Manono

Tutuila

Marquesas: begun, 1797; resumed, 1834; relinquished, 1841.

New Hebrides, four islands, attempted, viz. Tanna

Erromanga nbsp;

Ekeamu Nina

Loyalty Isles, four in number, viz. :�

New Caledonia Isle of Pinesnbsp;Marenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;

bifu nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;

The order we propose to pursue respecting the different islands of the West Indies, is, first to treat of those that belong to Great Britain,nbsp;naming them according to the time in which it took possession of them ;nbsp;and then to speak of those belonging to the other nations of Europe.nbsp;And as this arrangement will be adliered to throughout all the sectionsnbsp;of this chapter, the reader may trace the account of each island, bynbsp;merely noting its number in the first, or geographical section, andnbsp;looking for the corresponding number in the other two sections. It isnbsp;not however thought advisable to alter the plan of the � Tabular Viewnbsp;of Missionary Stations,� where the islands do not follow in geographicalnbsp;order, but according to the Society under which each station is to benbsp;found.*

No. 1. Barbadoes.��This most ancient of the British colonies,� says Montgomery Martin, � is situated at the south-eastern extremitynbsp;of the great American Archipelago, and is in size about twenty-twonbsp;miles in length, and fourteen in breadth. It is the most windward ofnbsp;all the Caribbean islands, because it holds the most easterly position,nbsp;and Havannah (on the north-western coast of the island of Cuba), is thenbsp;most leeward spot, because it is in the most westerly situation. The distinction of the West India Islands into Windward and Leeward originated innbsp;the circumstance of the wind blowing in these seas for nearly ninenbsp;months in the year from the eastern quarter. The islands are thereforenbsp;called windward if they are situated to the east, and leeward if to the

	Islands.
1	Barbadoes . .
2	St. Christopher�s
3	Nevis . . . .
4	Antigua . . .
5	Anguilla . , .
6	Jamaica . . .
7	The Virgin Isles
8	Tobago . . .
9	Honduras . . .
10	Montserrat . .
11	Dominica . . .
12	St. Vincent�s
13	Grenada, amp;c.
14	Bahamas . . .
15	Trinidad . . .
16	St. Lucia . .
17	Bermudas . . .
18 19	Hayti, or St. Domingo . Cuba ....
20	Porto Rico . .
4 22J	Guadaloupe . . Martinique . .nbsp;Marigalante . .nbsp;Deseada . . .nbsp;St. Thomas . . St. Jan ....
I 23/ 24	St. Croix . . . St. Martin . ,nbsp;St. Eustatia . .nbsp;Saba ....nbsp;Cura�oa . . .nbsp;St. Bartholomew

Date	Total
of Settlement.	Population.
1624	120,000
f In part, 1623�i 1 Whole, 1713 �	23,492
1628	9,250
1632	33,726
1650	3,080
1665	380,000
1660	7,731
I 1628) 11677/	13,920
1670	4,643
.1632) 11688/	7,119
1759	19,375
1763	26,533
1763	23,642
1783	18,718
1797	43,678
1803	15,320
1612	8,720
f 1492amp;, 1 1791 }	830,000
1492	432,000
1493	100,000
1632	114,000
1635	96,413
�----------	12,000
�	900
16-	5,050
� Latter part of gt; 1 17th Century, �	2,430
1733	31,387
�	6,000
1781	20,000
__	1,600
__	8,500
1785	8,000
Total . . .	2,377,227

Number of Blacks.	By whom possessed.
66,000	British.
15,667	Do.
9,225	Do.
23,360	Do.
2,300*	Do.
255,290	Do.
4,318	Do.
9,078	Do.
2,127	Do.
5,126	Do.
11,664	Do.
18,114$	Do.
19,009	Do.
7,734	Do.
17,539	Do.
10,328	Do.
3,314	Do.�
500,000	Independent.
198,000	Spanish.
20,000	Do.
112,000	French.
87,207	Do.
10,000	Do.
600	Do.
4,500	Danes.
2,250	Do.
29,164	Do.
_	Dutch.
15,000	Do.
_	Do.
7,300	Do.
4,000	Sweden.
1,449,582

fertile that four distinct crops may be seen in one field�of sugar-cane, maize, tobacco, and sweet-potatoes, and in alternate drills.* The latternbsp;is the root of a kind of convolvulus, and is cultivated for its roots, in thenbsp;tropical climates of both hemispheres ; it is very nourishing and easy ofnbsp;cultivation.! Mr. Coleridge says, � The characteristic beauty of Bar-badoes is its finished cultivation, and the air of fife and domestic comfortnbsp;which the entire face of the country presents.�

No. 2. St. Christopher�s, or St. Kitt�s.�This singularly beautiful island is seventy-two miles in circumference, and has a range of mountains running through the whole length of it, the highest part of whichnbsp;is 3711 feet in perpendicular height. The whole island is in a highnbsp;state of cultivation, and well watered with numerous springs�the waternbsp;though of which is often unfit for drinking, owing to its saline nature.nbsp;The water in common use in most of our West Indian possessions isnbsp;rain-water, which is preserved in large tanks, and is of excellent quality.nbsp;The vale of Basseterre is exquisitely beautiful, and enlivened with numberless villages, and the dwellings and sugar-mills of the planters. Thenbsp;soil is composed of dark loam and volcanic ashes, in alternate layers, tonbsp;the depth of seventy-five feet. This kind of soil is considered the bestnbsp;for the cultivation of the sugar-cane. From the smallness of the island,nbsp;and its elevation above the sea, St. Kitt�s is extremely dry and healthy,nbsp;and although by its position it is within the range of the hurricanes,nbsp;yet by these storms the air is tempered and purified, and health is thenbsp;natural result. Among its numerous fruits the China-orange grows innbsp;great luxuriance, and several kinds of citron perfume the air, from onenbsp;of which the scent called bergamot is made, being the essential oil thatnbsp;resides in the rind of the fruit. Great attention is paid to agriculture innbsp;this island, but sugar is the principal product. J

Mr. Coleridge mentions a magnificent avenue of cabbage-palms, in double rows, to the windward of the island ; he calls them � the finestnbsp;specimen of these tufted princes of the vegetable kingdom that are tonbsp;he seen in the West Indies.� They are larger and handsomer in appearance than the cocoa-nut palms, which are also cultivated in thesenbsp;islands by the negroes.

No. 3. Nevis.�This little island is a single mountain, whose summit has the appearance of a crater. Its distance from St. Kitt�s is only twonbsp;miles. It is four miles long and three broad. At the base of thenbsp;mountain is a border of level land, extremely fertile and well planted.nbsp;The mountain rises like a cone, piercing a fleecy mass of clouds which

t See � Library of Entertaining Knowledge,� vol. i. On Vegetable Substances, p. 165. � See Montgomery Martin on the British Colonies, vol. iv. p. 33'2.

sleep for ever round its summit. It is highly cultivated, and its scenery is extremely verdant and picturesque. A complete forest of evergreennbsp;trees grows like a ruff, or collar, round the neck of high land where cultivation ceases.

No. 6. Jamaica.�This beautiful isle is 160 miles long by 45 broad. It is screened by Cuba and Hayti from the tempestuous winds of thenbsp;Atlantic, and is rendered particularly valuable by its numerous and excellent harbours, which greatly facilitate a profitable commerce with the adjacent continent. A ridge of mountains, in some parts 8000 feet abovenbsp;the sea, run through the length of the island from east to west, intersected

here and there by other high ridges running from north to south, which are richly clothed with thick, sombre forests, or with groves of aU-spice-trees, and all the exquisite verdure of the tropics. The whole islandnbsp;presents a most splendid view of vast and richly-cultivated plains,nbsp;hills, and dales, rivers, bays, and creeks. The cedar, the mahoganytree, and other trees of enormous bulk, grow on the mountains, and thenbsp;vaUies between contain a rich soil of great depth, where the succulentnbsp;guinea-grass forms a carpet of ever-verdant beauty.

Spanish Town, on the south-west side of Jamaica, is the seat of government ; but Kingston, sixteen miles distant, is in reality the capital. Jamaica has sixteen principal secure havens, besides thirty bays ornbsp;shipping-stations, which afford good anchorage. The beauty of thenbsp;island is still further increased by its numerous rivers ; few, however,nbsp;are navigable for vessels of any burthen, owing to the mountainousnbsp;nature of the country. Black River is the deepest and least rapid, andnbsp;is navigable for canoes and flat-bottomed boats for about thirty miles.nbsp;The precipitate nature of the currents make them well-adapted fornbsp;mechanical purposes, such as turning mills, amp;c., and their quick agitation over the falls, makes the water more wholesome, and prevents thenbsp;formation of damps and mists, which would otherwise be occasioned.nbsp;The cascades among the mountains in Jamaica are magnificent andnbsp;beautiful in the extreme. We could wish that space permitted us tonbsp;dwell at greater length upon the truly lovely scenery of this fertilenbsp;island, but the nature of this work only allows of this very brief description, and those of our readers who wish for a more general detail, arenbsp;directed to Montgomery Martin on the Colonies, to Mr. Coleridge�snbsp;� Six Months in the West Indies,� and to � The Past and Presentnbsp;State of Jamaica,� by J. M, Philippo, twenty years a missionary in thenbsp;island.

The climate of Jamaica is stated by Montgomery Martin, and by the missionary just named, to be by no means so insalubrious and hot, asnbsp;has often been represented. The coolest parts are on the sea-coast,nbsp;and upon the mountains in the interior, where the air may vie in pointnbsp;of salubrity with that of any tropical climate in the world. The heat isnbsp;more characterized by its duration than by its intensity.* In Jamaica,nbsp;the thermometer ranges in the lowlands throughout the year betweennbsp;70 and 80 degrees, and in the mountains from 50 to 75 degrees. Werenbsp;it not for the sea and land breezes, which blow alternately day andnbsp;night throughout the year, and the masses of clouds which often interpose themselves between the earth and the fierce rays of the sun, the

heat in the towns, during some seasons, would be very insupportable. In the West Indies the air is usually buoyant and elastic, and exerts annbsp;enlivening influence on the spirits. The coolest time of the year isnbsp;from November to April, and the hottest from May to October. Thenbsp;wet seasons last from May to June, and again from October to the endnbsp;of November. The rains are preceded by violent storms of thundernbsp;and lightning ; though storms and hurricanes are less frequent innbsp;Jamaica, than in some of the other West India islands.*

7. The Virgin Isles.�Tortola is the largest of this group of islands belonging to Great Britain ; two others�St. Thomas and St. John�nbsp;belong to the Danes. The Virgin Isles are rugged and mountainous,nbsp;and contain a considerable proportion of pasture-land, the soil offeringnbsp;but little encouragement to the sugar-planter. The harbours and baysnbsp;afford shelter and anchorage for a great extent of shipping.!

No. 8. Tobago.�Proceeding in a southerly direction from the last-named island, we find Tobago, which is principally composed of conical hiUs, terminating towards the sea in abrupt precipices. It is an extremely picturesque island, and abounds in streams and rivulets. Almostnbsp;every kind of West Indian production flourishes at Tobago, as thenbsp;orange, lemon, guava, cocoa-nut, and date-palms, pomegranate, fig,nbsp;and grape; and all the culinary plants of Europe grow in perfection.nbsp;The cinnamon and pimento grow wild, and the cotton of Tobago is ofnbsp;excellent quality. This island is out of the range of hurricanes, andnbsp;the winds are south-east and south the greater part of the year.

No. 9. Honduras.�This British colonial possession is a portion of the mainland or continent of Central America, and is upwards of sixtynbsp;thousand square miles in extent. The shore (on which is situated thenbsp;town of Balize) is flat, but gradually ascends to the mountain district,nbsp;which is magnificently wooded, and watered with several fine streams.nbsp;The scenery is described as very picturesque, by Montgomery Martinnbsp;and others. The chief value of this territory to Great Britain consistsnbsp;in its mahogany timber and its logwood, but it hkewise exports somenbsp;cedar and indigo. The mahogany-tree is generally found in a solitarynbsp;position in the thick forests of Honduras. It is cut in April or May,nbsp;the ground at all other seasons of the year being too soft to admit ofnbsp;the heavily-laden trucks drawn by oxen to pass to the rivers withoutnbsp;sinking. The tree is cut down about twelve feet from the ground, and,nbsp;being sawn into logs, is conveyed with much labour through roads cutnbsp;every season for that purpose to the nearest river, down which the logs

* See � Past and Present State of Jamaica,� by J. M. Philippo, p. 80. t See Montgomery Martin on the Colonies, vol. i. of the West Indies, p. 289.

are floated upon flat-bottomed boats to the sea, whence they are shipped to Great Britain or the United States. None is allowed to be sent tonbsp;the latter country exceeding twenty inches in diameter. The logwoodnbsp;grows on low swampy ground, near fresh-water creeks and lakes, onnbsp;the edges of which the most valuable part of the tree (the roots) extend.nbsp;It is sought in the dry season, and the logs collected in heaps ; whennbsp;the ground is laid under water by the quantity of rain that falls duringnbsp;the wet season, a small canoe is floated up to the wood-cutter�s huts tonbsp;carry away the logwood. This country abounds with wild animals andnbsp;game of all sorts, and is extremely fertile in trees and fruits.*

No. 10. Montserrat.�Like many other islands in the vicinity, Montserrat probably owes its origin to a volcanic eruption, and, as its name would imply, is extremely broken and mountainous. On the southnbsp;there is no approach for vessels of any description, the sea, for a milenbsp;or two, being studded with immense rocks and shelving banks of coral :nbsp;here the mountains shoot up perpendicularly to the height of fifteennbsp;hundred feet, their declivities forming steep precipices, separated fromnbsp;each other by immense chasms. These gullies, and the mountainsnbsp;themselves, are richly clothed to the very summit with lofty woods, andnbsp;all the variety of beautiful shrubs and plants peculiar to a tropical mountain-region. The deep vaUies often end in lovely green savannahs (ornbsp;plains), which, as Mr. Coleridge says, � Nature ofttimes so mysteriouslynbsp;clears in the midst of the impenetrable woods of tropical regions.�nbsp;Plymouth, the capital, is a small town, but the houses, constructed ofnbsp;fine grey stone, have a substantial and comfortable appearance. Thenbsp;Montpellier of the West ife the term given to this Indian isle, which isnbsp;remarkable for the peculiar elasticity of the atmosphere, and the maj�sticnbsp;grandeur of its picturesque and lofty mountains.f

No. 11. Dominica.�The fertile vallies of this island which intervene between its lofty rugged mountains, are watered by about thirty finenbsp;rivers, and numerous rivulets and � waterfalls, which descend from thenbsp;hills with great impetuosity, and under the canopy of magnificent loftynbsp;forests, form the most romantic cascades. The highest mountain isnbsp;5314 feet above the sea. The lower part of the hills behind Roseau,nbsp;the capital, are clothed with rich parterres of the coffee-tree, whosenbsp;delicate white blossoms perfume the air, even to some distance over thenbsp;sea, while the upper part is covered with forest-trees of great beauty.

* � The Mosquito Shore� extends from Cape Gracies a Dios to the River St. Juan, which runs out of Lake Micaraguay, and is 600 miles in extent. The Indians who inhabit this coast are in alliance with, and in some respect subject to, the crown of Greatnbsp;Britain. See Montgomery Martin on the West Indies, vol. i. p. 136.

In the level country, towards the coast, and in many parts of the interior, the soil is peculiarly adapted to the cultivation of sugar, coffee, cocoa,nbsp;and all other articles of tropical produce. Several of the mountains ofnbsp;Dominica are continually burning with sulphur, of which they throw upnbsp;vast quantities. This island is twenty-nine miles long and seventeennbsp;broad. The climate is healthy, and it is not so hot as many of thenbsp;islands. The only native quadrupeds are the coney (or agouti) andnbsp;wild-boar. European domestic animals and poultry all thrive weU innbsp;Dominica. The birds are numerous and extremely beautiful, especiallynbsp;the humming-birds and parroquets, Dominica being the best waterednbsp;of any of the Caribbee isles, its vegetation is very luxuriant, and thenbsp;trees grow to a vast height and size. The tree-ferns (whole forests ofnbsp;which are found in the recesses of the hiUs) are very beautiful, some ofnbsp;them growing to the height of twenty-five feet.*

No. 12. St. Vincent.�This most beautiful island is eighteen miles long and eleven broad, and stands high in reputation as a healthy station,�hills and valUies, wood and water, in abundance, being so disposed, as to contribute much to its salubrity. In St. Vincent is thenbsp;beautiful and extraordinary volcanic mountain, called La Souffriere,nbsp;which is 4000 feet above the level of the sea. The last eruption tooknbsp;place in 1812, when the destructive fire and lava destroyed all vegetation on the north side of the island, and left nothing but a bare andnbsp;blackened mass of rock. On the south, the mountain is richly coverednbsp;to the top with tufts of foliage. Hurricanes have been severely felt innbsp;this island ; that of 1831 destroyed the greater part of the sugar plantations and works to the north and west of the island. The chief valuable products exported are sugar, molasses and rum, which, in 1832,nbsp;amounted in value to upwards of �200,000. There is a famous botanicnbsp;garden in St, Vincent, where aU the beautiful and curious West Indianbsp;plants and fruits are seen to great perfection, as the teak, the mahogany,nbsp;wide-spreading mango, and huge wild fig, or banyan. The ornamentalnbsp;tree-fern, the high stems of which are adorned with garlands of convolvuli, and numerous gay creepers. The useful calabash-tree, thenbsp;screw-pine, the cork-tree, the bread-fruit, the nutmeg-tree, the cassava,nbsp;and the sago-palm ; the cocoa-nut, the date, and the cabbage-palm ;nbsp;the stately aloe, throvring up its princely column of flowers from amidstnbsp;of host of spear-like leaves ; while, by the side of every rivulet, risenbsp;large clusters of the bamboo, without doubt the most generally usefulnbsp;of all tropical plants.

and the most lovely of our West India isles, is about sixty miles distant from Tobago, and the same from the continent of South America. It isnbsp;about twenty-five miles in length, and about twelve in breadth. Grenada is mountainous, and extremely picturesque. The ridges are coverednbsp;with splendid forest-trees and brushwood, and are everywhere accessible.nbsp;They often rise to the height of 3000 feet above the sea, and are clothednbsp;to the top with vegetation. There are several hot chalybeate and sulphureous springs, and numerous small rivers descend from the hills,nbsp;irrigating the country in every direction. Near the centre of the island,nbsp;at the height of 1740 feet, is a fresh water lake, two and a half miles innbsp;circumference, completely enclosed with mountains. About five milesnbsp;from the shore, on the western side, the island loses its rugged and precipitous features, and consists in a level fertile plain, where sugar isnbsp;principally cultivated ; but there are also some plantations of coffee andnbsp;cocoa. The Grenadines are a cluster of small islands, producing smallnbsp;quantities of sugar, rum, molasses, cotton, fruits, vegetables, live stock,nbsp;and poultry. The largest is subject to great droughts, supposed to benbsp;caused by the want of wood,�the trees having been imprudently cutnbsp;down. It is a known fact that forests attract clouds, which falling innbsp;heavy rains, swell the rivers and streams.

No. 14. The Bahamas.�This singular group of islands, coral-reefs, and cultivated sand-banks (called keys) extend for a distance of 600nbsp;miles. The area of the whole group is computed to contain upwards ofnbsp;two millions and a half of acres, of which surface not quite half a millionnbsp;of acres are cultivated. Cotton was formerly an abundant article of exportation from the Bahamas, and there is scarcely a spot in any of thenbsp;islands that is not covered with a luxuriant vegetation. Both Europeannbsp;and tropical fruits and vegetables thrive well, and are abundant ; alsonbsp;ship-timber of an excellent quality, and logwood, fustic, ebony, cedar,nbsp;mastic, and satin-wood trees abound. The shores are well suppliednbsp;with fish ; and there is green turtle enough among the Bahamas tonbsp;supply aU Europe. Sponges of good quality abound on the coasts.nbsp;From the flatness of these islands, and their constant exposure to seabreezes, as well as to their situation being out of the range of the tropics, and removed consequently from the excessive heat of a verticalnbsp;sun, the Bahamas enjoy a mild, equable, and delightful climate : theynbsp;are peculiarly healthy, and almost every island is furnished with prettynbsp;good water, arising from springs. There is scarcely any sugar grownnbsp;on the islands.! The remarkable current called the Gulph stream, runsnbsp;out of the Gulph of Mexico, in a north-easterly direction, between the

coasts of Florida and the Bahama islands, and extends as far north as three days� sail from New York, where the temperature of the air isnbsp;heightened by the heat of the waves below. It is said to be in somenbsp;parts 250 miles wide. To account for this enormous current of warmnbsp;water is nearly impossible ; the causes which occasion the magnitude ofnbsp;the current, and the heat of the water, seem mere matter of conjecture ;nbsp;but its beneficial effect in melting the ice and unlocking the harbours ofnbsp;North America, affords one evidence among many, that what appear tonbsp;us the most disastrous occurrences of nature, are made to answer goodnbsp;and wise purposes in the hands of a merciful and gracious Providence.

No. 15. Trinidad.�This large and most beautifully fertile island is situated opposite to the mouth of the great river Orinoco, and receivesnbsp;a vast quantity of alluvial soil every year on the western side, from thatnbsp;mighty and rapid river. Trinidad is ninety miles long by fifty broad,nbsp;and by its geological structure seems as if it once formed a part of thenbsp;continent of South America. It has a ridge of rocky mountains somenbsp;3000 feet above the sea, running along the north shore, and on thenbsp;southern coast are a range of fertile evergreen downs or round-toppednbsp;hills. Tlie extensive plains, and numerous rivers and streams of Trinidad,�its gigantic and magnificent vegetation, its elastic atmosphere,nbsp;deep blue seas, and azure skies, with its forests of palms, groves ofnbsp;citrons, and hedges of spices and perfumes,�all and each have combined to give this beautiful isle, the appellation of the Indian Paradise.nbsp;Port of Spain, the capital, on the western coast, lying in an amphitheatrenbsp;of hills, is one of the finest towns in the West Indies. The houses arenbsp;all of massive cut stone, none being allowed to be built of wood, or independent of a prescribed form. Among the principal buildings thenbsp;Protestant church stands conspicuous, its interior ornamented with thenbsp;various rich woods of the island, arranged with much taste. There isnbsp;also a splendid Roman Catholic church. The barracks, which accommodate 600 men, are splendid buildings, on a fine plain about a mile fromnbsp;the town. Its mud volcanoes are extraordinary phenomena : duringnbsp;the hottest months of the dry season, cold mud is here thrown to thenbsp;height of thirty feet. One of these craters, 150 feet in diameter, hasnbsp;boiling mud constantly bubbling, but never overflowing its edge. Theynbsp;are situated at the south of the island, on an alluvial tongue of land,nbsp;pointing directly into one of the mouths of the Orinoco. Another remarkable mineral phenomenon is the Asphaltum or Pitch Lake, situatenbsp;on a small peninsula on the leeward or western side of the island.nbsp;Groups of beautiful shrubs and flowers, tufts of wild pine-apples andnbsp;aloes, and swarms of splendid butterflies and humming birds enliven anbsp;scene, which would otherwise be dismal in the extreme. Islets of pitch

352 CHAP. XIII.�WEST INDIES, amp;C.�PART I. WEST INDIES, are constantly rising out of the lake, and become engulphed again.nbsp;A great deal of chocolate is made from the cacao-tree in Trinidad. Thenbsp;seeds, or nuts, which grow within a pulpy fruit, are the parts used innbsp;making the chocolate. The climate of Trinidad is not so moist as Guiana, and being an island, the winds are more constant and the atmosphere therefore more frequently renovated. Hurricanes are unknownnbsp;in Trinidad and Tobago.

No. 16. St. Lucia.�This island is divided longitudinally by a ridge of lofty hills. Its appearance from the south is very remarkable. � Twonbsp;mountains rising perpendicularly out of the sea, and feathered from thenbsp;shore to the clouds with evergreen foliage, stand like pillars on eithernbsp;side of the small, but beautiful bay. While sailing along the shore thenbsp;variety of scenery is exquisitely beautiful, the back ground is composednbsp;of mountains of the most fantastic shapes ; while at the distance of everynbsp;three or four miles, appear the most lovely little cones and bays, fringednbsp;with the vivid green of the luxuriant cane-fields, and enhvened by thenbsp;neatly laid-out mansions of the planters.� * There is an exellent harbour on the west of the island, with a narrow entrance defended bynbsp;several batteries which will only admit one ship at a time, but is largenbsp;enough to contain thirty ships of the line. Castries is the only town innbsp;the island, which is thirty-two miles long and twelve broad. Mr. Coleridge describes the fire-flies, which sometimes illuminate the woodynbsp;mountains in the evening, as a most beautiful and curious spectacle.nbsp;St. Lucia is divided into two districts,�Basse-terre, or the low and leeward territory, which is populous and well cultivated,�and Capis-terre,nbsp;or the high windward territory, which is covered in a great measurenbsp;with woods and morasses.f

No. 17. The Bermudas.�The Bermudas are a cluster of small rocky coral islets, situate in the midst of the Atlantic, about 600 miles fromnbsp;the coast of North America. Only eight of the group possess any realnbsp;importance. Respecting their climate, they are exempted from thenbsp;scorching heat of the tropical sun in the West Indies, and enjoy a continual spring, being clothed in perpetual verdure. Arrow-root is thenbsp;chief vegetable produce cultivated for exportation in the islands.

No. 18. Hayti, or St. Dominyo.�This is a very fine island, about 450 miles in length, and 110 in breadth. In the centre rises a loftynbsp;chain of mountains, the highest peak of which is 9000 feet above thenbsp;level of the sea. These mountains are clothed nearly to the top withnbsp;noble woods, and from them flow numerous streams, which bestow ex-

treme fertility upon the plains beneath. The country around Port-au-Prince, the capital, is marshy, and therefore not healthy. The popula-. tion of this town is from twelve to fifteen thousand.

No. 19. Cuba.�This island extends more than 700 miles in length, and 117 in breadth, and is more extensive than all the other Westnbsp;Indian islands put altogether. Being traversed throughout by highnbsp;chains of mountains, the plains beneath are most copiously watered, andnbsp;rendered fit for the production of every article of tropical culture,*nbsp;Havannah, its capital, is one of the largest and most flourishingnbsp;cities of America, and is a port of great resort and traffic ; it is saidnbsp;to contain 120,000 inhabitants. The country round Havannah is notnbsp;picturesque, and you must travel many miles before arriving at thenbsp;mountainous and cultivated parts of the island.

No. 20. Porto Pico.�The southern coast of this island extends ninety miles in length, and presents to view no peculiar aspect of interest or beauty. The mountains to the south are low and uncultivated.nbsp;Much of the interior of the island is luxuriant and fertile.

No. 21. Guadaloupe, and Martinique.�These two islands are fertile and beautiful. Martinique is fifty miles long by sixteen broad, andnbsp;Guadaloupe is fifty by twenty-five. The mountainous parts are wellnbsp;watered, and cultivated with sugar and coffee.

No. 22. St. John, St. Thomas, and St. Croix.�The latter of these three Danish islands is by some writers called Santa Cruz. It is thenbsp;largest of the three, and contains eighty-one square miles. Here allnbsp;the West Indian fruits, such as the banana and plantain, the guava, thenbsp;wild orange, lime and shaddock, the mango and tamarind, amp;c., grow innbsp;wild profusion, with the cocoa-nut and cabbage palms, the glory of thenbsp;mountain scenery. These islands are carefully cultivated, and chieflynbsp;with the sugar-cane. It is one of the despotic rules of the Danish Government that no man is to cut down a tree, even oft his own estate, asnbsp;they are supposed to attract the showers, and these small islands dependnbsp;mainly upon the skies for their supply of water.

No. 23. St. Martin, St. Eustatia, Saba, and Cura�oa.�The first of these islands is cultivated with great care, and abounds especially withnbsp;tobacco. Saba is only twelve miles in circuit, and being destitute of anbsp;harbour is of no commercial value. Cura�oa is a larger island, far tonbsp;the south-west, and only seventy miles distant from the Spanish main.nbsp;It was formerly an island of some note (when Spain shut her portsnbsp;against foreign nations), as being the seat of a considerable contrabandnbsp;trade ; but now that the Spanish provinces in South America are declared free and independent, it has sunk into minor importance.

Christopher Columbus was the first discoverer of the West India islands. He was a Genoese seaman of a hardy character and chivalrousnbsp;spirit ; and after in vain tendering his services to several European monarchs, he engaged in the employ of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain,nbsp;and set sail on a voyage of discovery in 1492, at the close of which yearnbsp;he landed on one of the Bahamas, to which he gave the name of Sannbsp;Salvador. Cuba was the next island discovered, and then Hayti (ornbsp;St. Domingo), where the Spaniards formed a colony. As years rollednbsp;on, Spain extended her possessions to Jamaica, Cuba, Trinidad, Portonbsp;Rico, amp;c., and finally to Mexico and Peru under daring adventurers,nbsp;such as Cortez ; and for many years the Spaniards were left in undisputed possession of the West Indies ; but the French and English soonnbsp;began to molest them,�the first English trading-vessel that visited thenbsp;islands arrived at Porto Rico in 1519, being as was said by the captain,nbsp;� sent by the king to ascertain the state of those islands, of which therenbsp;was so much talk in Europe.� But it was not till 1624 (at the close ofnbsp;the reign of our First James) that any British colony was formed in thenbsp;West Indies, when Barbadoes was occupied by the servants of Sir William Courteen. For the next fifty years the progress of English andnbsp;French settlement in these islands was extremely rapid. During thenbsp;terrible wars between these two great rival powers, the West Indiesnbsp;were often the scene of conflict, and by the year 1810, Britain had captured every West India island belonging to any power at war with hernbsp;in Europe. At the peace of 1815, a restoration and re-partitioning ofnbsp;the islands took place, and they have since remained, as they were thennbsp;settled, in the hands of their respective owners.*

Having thus given a brief sketch of the acquisition of the West India islands by the European powers, we proceed to point out the manner innbsp;which each island came into the possession of Great Britain.

No. 1. Barbadoes.�It has been already stated that this island was the first of the Caribean group possessed by Britain. The Portuguesenbsp;are said to have visited this island about the year 1600, but finding itnbsp;uninhabited and rude in appearance, they shortly abandoned it. In 1605,nbsp;an English ship returning from Guinea, touched at Barbadoes, and tooknbsp;possession of it, inscribing on several of the trees, �James, King of England, and of this island.� Barbadoes was after that neglected for nearly

twenty years, when some Dutch men-of-war having visited it, reported favourably of its adaptation for cultivation, which reaching the ears of Sirnbsp;William Courteen�an enterprizing London merchant�he endeavourednbsp;to effect a settlement on the island. Mean time, it was given by Jamesnbsp;the First, in 1627, with several other West India islands, to the King�snbsp;favourite, the Earl of Carlisle. He contracted with a company of London merchants for a grant of 10,000 acres of land, on condition of receiving from each settler forty pounds of cotton annually. He appointednbsp;Wolferstone, a native of Bermuda, its governor, and landed sixty-fournbsp;settlers in 1628, who built a bridge and several wooden houses, andnbsp;thus laid the foundation of Bridgetown, the present capital. The civilnbsp;wars which soon after raged in England, by occasioning many to leavenbsp;this country, contributed to people and enrich the island, and on thenbsp;downfal of King Charles the First, many respectable families attached tonbsp;the royal cause, found shelter and comfort in Barbadoes. Charles thenbsp;Second in exile, desirous of securing the West Indies to his crown,nbsp;appointed Lord Willoughby governor ; but Cromwell sent a body ofnbsp;troops to reduce the loyal Barbadians to the obedience of the Commonwealth, and with a view of crippling the power of Holland, with whomnbsp;the settlers carried on a lucrative traffic, the far-famed Navigation Lawsnbsp;were passed, by which the ships of any foreign nations were prohibitednbsp;from trading with any of the English plantations abroad, without anbsp;license from the Council of State. The inhabitants of this fertile islandnbsp;rapidly increased from the time of its first settlement : in 1674 it contained 50,000 white and 100,000 coloured and negro inhabitants.

No. 2. Si. Christopher, or St. Kitts.�This fertile island was first discovered by Columbus in 1493, and probably derived its name fromnbsp;the great navigator himself. It was densely peopled by the Caribs,�nbsp;the Spaniards only occasionally resorting to the island to procure waternbsp;or provisions. In 1623, Sir Thomas Warner* (an English gentleman,nbsp;and celebrated military adventurer of those days) settled at St. Kittsnbsp;with his son and fourteen settlers from London. On his second visitnbsp;with more settlers, in 1627, he found the French landing upon thenbsp;island for the purpose of colonizing it. The Caribs took alarm, andnbsp;made war on their European invaders, who discomfited them, and thenbsp;French and Engfigh then agreed on dividing the island between themselves. It suffered several reverses and changes, till at the peace ofnbsp;Utrecht, in 1713, it was entirely ceded to the British crown, and mostnbsp;of the French inhabitants removed to St. Domingo. It soon rapidly in-

* For his history, sec � Antigua and the Antiguans,� published hv Saunders and Otley, 1844.

creased in prosperity, notwithstanding a terrific hurricane in 1722, from which it suffered severely. The government is vested in a lieutenant-governor, a council, and house of assembly, with a deputy from thenbsp;small island of Anguilla.*

No. 3. Nevis.�Columbus is said to have named this island from the Mountain of Nieves in Spain. It was first colonized by a few Englishmen under Sir Thomas Warner, in 1628. Its chief produce is sugar.nbsp;The total value of its exports in 1833 was upwards of �28,000. Thatnbsp;of its imports nearly the same.f

No. 4. Antigua.�This island was discovered by Columbus in 1493, and named by him from the title of a church in Seville, Santa Maria denbsp;la Antigua. It was settled by Sir Thomas Warner, with a few Englishnbsp;families, in 1632, and, in 1663, it was given in grant to Lord Willoughby, by Charles II., but was not finally settled as a part of thenbsp;dominions of the crown till 1688. Antigua is legislated for by a governor, legislative council, and house of assemjily consisting of twenty-five members. The governor of Antigua is also governor of Montserrat,nbsp;St. Christopher�s, Nevis, Anguilla, Dominica, the Virgin Islands, andnbsp;the little island of Barbuda.J The value in sterling money of exportsnbsp;from Antigua, in 1833, including sugar (the principal production), wasnbsp;�169,244.

The legislature of Antigua was the first in the West India islands to set the example of an improvement in the criminal law with regard tonbsp;negro slaves, by afibrding the accused party the benefit of trial by jury ;nbsp;and the colonists of this island have ever been distinguished for theirnbsp;desire to mitigate the horrors of slavery, and to inculcate religion andnbsp;morality among their dependants. Their house of assembly passed annbsp;act in February, 1834, afterwards ratified by the council of Antigua,nbsp;decreeing the emancipation of every slave in the island on the 1st ofnbsp;August, 1834, unqualified from all the provisions of the act of thenbsp;British parliament with reference to apprenticeship.�

No. 5. Anguilla.�This little island was discovered and colonized by the English in 1650. The colonists have a chief head or magistrate,nbsp;who is confirmed in his oflfice by the government of Antigua, and anbsp;deputy is sent to the St. Kitt�s house of assembly.

No. 6. Jamaica.�The original name of this magnificent island, in the Indian language, was Xaymaca, and signified abundance of wood andnbsp;water. It was first discovered by Columbus, in 1494, and was called

* See Montgomery Martin on the West Indies, vol. ii. p. 323. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid. p. 335.

� This small island, 3d miles north of Antigua, contains 1500 colonists, and is used for roaring cattle, swine, and poultry for the neighbouring islands.

g See Montgomery Martin on the West Indies, p. 290. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ibid. p. 341.

by him St. Jago (or St. James), from the patron-saint of Spain. When first visited by the Spaniards, it was found to he densely peopled withnbsp;Indians, the greater part of whom were carried away by the Spaniardsnbsp;to work in the mines of South America. Their towns and villages werenbsp;laid waste, the slightest resistance was revenged with indiscriminatenbsp;slaughter, the chiefs were murdered in cold blood, and all who werenbsp;spared sank into the condition of slaves to their cruel conquerors, whonbsp;are said to have slain or caused to perish more than 60,000 Indians innbsp;this island alone ; so that when the English conquered Jamaica in 1655,nbsp;there were no aborigines at all remaining, and only 1500 Spaniards andnbsp;Portuguese, with about the same number of mulattoes and negro slaves,nbsp;who they had imported to cultivate cotton and sugar. These were soonnbsp;obliged to yield to the armed forces sent from England by Cromwell,nbsp;who wished to humble the power of Spain, as that nation favoured thenbsp;restoration of Charles II. ; and he was also desirous of establishing thenbsp;maritime supremacy of England by the foundation of colonies, and bynbsp;putting an end to the exclusive right of navigating the American seas,nbsp;as claimed by Ferdinand and Isabella. In all the wars in which England has been engaged with foreign nations, Jamaica has ever evinced anbsp;loyalty and attachment to the mother-country unsurpassed in the annalsnbsp;of colonial history. Various insurrections of the negroes have occurrednbsp;from time to time in this island. The mere record of rebellions innbsp;Jamaica (of which history mentions twenty-seven between 1678 andnbsp;1832), would alone serve to show the danger of a slave-population.nbsp;Jamaica is ruled by a governor, appointed by the crown, aided by anbsp;council of twelve, and a house of assembly consisting of forty-five representatives, sent from the twenty-one parishes into which the islandnbsp;is divided. Persons of colour are now admitted to all the privileges ofnbsp;white persons, and the qualification for a member of the Jamaica housenbsp;of assembly is a freehold ot �300 a-year in any part of the island, or anbsp;personal estate of �3000, and a freehold of �10 in Jamaica.

The total value of exports from this colony, in 1832, was �2,814,308, consisting of coffee, sugar, molasses, spirits, mahogany, and other woods,nbsp;cotton, fruits, iron, cinnamon, amp;c. The imports amounted to morenbsp;than a million-and-a-half, and were chiefly cotton manufactures, linens,nbsp;fish, woollens, and various articles of food, clothing, and necessaries, ofnbsp;British manufacture.

No. 7. The Virgin Isles.�This cluster of lefty islets and rocks is divided between the Spaniards, British, and Danes. Tortola the largest,nbsp;was first settled by a party of Dutch pirates in 1648; but they werenbsp;dispossessed by the English in 1666, and Charles II. annexed this islandnbsp;and some other smaller ones near it, to the British crown, in commis-

sion to Sir William Stapleton. They are under the government of St. Kitt�s, but possess a council and assembly of their own.

No. 8. Tobago.�The sovereignty of this island was claimed by James I. of England in 1608, and it was given by Charles I. to thenbsp;Earl of Pembroke in 1628 ; but no effectual colonization then took place.nbsp;The Dutch afterwards settled upon it, but they were at length dispossessednbsp;by the French in 1677. At the peace of 1763, Louis XV. of Francenbsp;ceded Tobago in perpetuity to England. The chief exports are rum,nbsp;sugar, molasses, and in 1831 they amounted in value to �10,000.nbsp;Tobago is ruled by a governor, council and house of assembly, whosenbsp;powers and authority are similar to those of Jamaica.

No. 9. Honduras.�The Spanish term Hondura signifies � depth,� and was given to this portion of the coast of the main land of America, bynbsp;its discoverers, on account of the great depth of water along thenbsp;shore. The period of the first settlement of the English is very vague.nbsp;It was resorted to for the logwood and mahogany that abound in thenbsp;country, and the British wood-cutters roused the jealousy of the Spanishnbsp;government of the adjacent territory�which fitted out several expeditions against them ; but the English were generally victorious. By anbsp;treaty with Spain in 1670, Honduras was in general terms granted tonbsp;Great Britain, and again in 1763, the Spaniards were compelled to givenbsp;a formal permission of occupancy to the British colonists, of � the landsnbsp;allotted for the cutting of logwood and mahogany.�

No. 10. Montserrat.�This island was first settled on by Sir Thomas Warner, Kt., under the protection of the British Government in 1632.nbsp;About 1664, it was taken by the French, hut was restored to the English at the peace of Buda in 1688, and has ever since continued in ournbsp;possession.*

No. 11. Dominica.�This island was discovered by Columbus in 1493�and some years after, its right of occupance was claimed by thenbsp;three kingdoms of England, France, and Spain. The possession remained an unsettled point, and the island was considered neutral tillnbsp;1759: when by conquest it fell under the dominion of Great Britain, to whom it was afterwards more fully ceded by the treaty ofnbsp;Paris in 1763. France, has twice since that period (in 1778, and innbsp;1805), attempted to wrest the island from us, but in vain. By thenbsp;population returns, as given in Martin�s History of the Colonies, greatnbsp;numbers of the European inhabitants are Roman Catholics. Thenbsp;government is in the hands of a lieutenant-governor, a council of twelvenbsp;and a legislative house of assembly, consisting of nineteen members ;

besides the usual courts of law, established in each of the British West India Islands. A large part of this very fine island is still comprisednbsp;of extensive wood lands, not brought under cultivation, but wellnbsp;adapted for the growth of cocoa, coffee, and all kinds of provisions, andnbsp;large pastures might be formed for the rearing of cattle.*

No. 12. St. Vincent�s.�This most beautiful island was discovered by Columbus in 1498 ; but it does not appear he took possession of it, asnbsp;the native inhabitants, the Caribs, were both numerous and warlike.nbsp;In 1672, St. Vincent�s, with Barbadoes, St. Lucia, and Dominica, werenbsp;declared subject to Great Britain, by Charles IL, and placed under onenbsp;governor ; but no steps were taken to occupy the island, though thenbsp;English occasionally visited it for wood and water. In 1719, somenbsp;French settlers established themselves on the island, and in 1723,nbsp;George 1. granted St. Vincent (with St. Lucia) to the Duke of Montague ; but still the natives were left in possession. At the treaty ofnbsp;Paris, in 1763, the island was ceded in perpetuity to Great Britain, andnbsp;the lands were sold to defray the expenses of the war with France.nbsp;In 1772, a war with the Caribs commenced which terminated by anbsp;treaty the following year, by which the English assigned them a smallnbsp;portion of the island to live in. The French took the island in 1779�nbsp;but at the general peace of 1783 it was restored to England, and hasnbsp;continued in our hands ever since, subject to occasional revolts of thenbsp;Caribs, who were at length removed to an island in the bay of Honduras, and tranquillity has since prevailed. The eruptions of thenbsp;* Souffriere,� a volcanic mountain, caused great devastation, both innbsp;1718 and in 1812. Its exports consist of sugar, rum, molasses, coffee,nbsp;cotton, and cocoa�and they amounted in value in 1832, to upwards ofnbsp;�250,000. The government rests in a governor, a council ofnbsp;twelve, and an assembly of nineteen members, three for each of thenbsp;five parishes into which the island is divided, two for Kingstown, andnbsp;two for the Grenadines.

No. 13. Grenada, and the Grenadines.�Columbus discovered Grenada in 1498, and found it peopled by a warlike race of Caribs. The French seized on the island in 1650, and barbarously exterminated thenbsp;natives, most of whem they massacred without mercy, not sparing evennbsp;the women and children ; this is related by one of their own writers.nbsp;Father Du Tertre, who mentions that during the progress of this extermination, about forty Caribs, who escaped being put to death, rannbsp;towards a precipice, from whence they cast themselves into the sea, andnbsp;miserably perished�the spot is still called, � Mome des Sauteurs �

� the Leaper�s Hill.� Cultivation under the French made but little progress, but by a smuggling intercourse with the Dutch, the Grenadians improved in wealth. The island surrendered to Great Britain innbsp;1762, and after suffering from an insurrection of the French in 1777,nbsp;was finally ceded to the British crown at the general peace of 1783.

No. 14. The Bahamas.�St. Salvador, one of these islands, is celebrated as having been the first land discovered by Columbus, in the western hemisphere, in 1492. The Bahamas were then densely peoplednbsp;by a mild and happy race of Indians, who were soon shipped off tonbsp;work and perish in the mines of Peru and Mexico, by the mercilessnbsp;Spaniards, in their insatiable search for gold. In 1629, some of thenbsp;islands were colonized by the English, the native races having by thatnbsp;time been completely exterminated,�they became at this time a rendezvous for Pirates, and were not finally settled under the British crownnbsp;till the peace of 1783. New Providence Island is considered the mostnbsp;important of the Bahamas, and on it is situated Nassau, the seat ofnbsp;government.

No. 15. Trinidad.�This island was first discovered by Columbus during his third voyage, in 1498, and was then thickly peopled bynbsp;Caribs, of a mild disposition and fine form, of industrious habits, andnbsp;of a lighter colour than the Aborigines of the other Caribbee islands.nbsp;When the Spaniards took possession of Trinidad in 1588, these werenbsp;drafted off to the mines upon the main land, or put to death by fire andnbsp;sword,* though a few were saved by the heroic and benign Las Casas,nbsp;who first recommended the introduction of African slaves into thenbsp;West Indies, to save the Indians from total destruction, by the hardnbsp;work, for which they were so unfit. Spain did not pay much attentionnbsp;to the colony until 1 783, when, fearing her Castilian dominions in Southnbsp;America would follow the example of the British provinces in Northnbsp;America and revolt from the mother country, she passed an edict,nbsp;encouraging all foreigners of the Roman Catholic religion to establishnbsp;themselves on the island, with a promise of their being protected fromnbsp;debt for five years. In consequence of these measures, crowds ofnbsp;adventurers and abundance of capital poured into Trinidad from Europe,nbsp;and North and South America, and in 1797, there were 159 large sugarnbsp;plantations, 130 coffee farms, 60 cocoa ditto, and 103 cotton ditto.nbsp;The Revolution in France added numbers and wealth to Trinidad, andnbsp;in four years time from the passing the edict, the magnificent capital ofnbsp;Port of Spain usurped the place of a few fishermen�s palm-leaved huts.

* When Sir Walter Raleigh visited Trinidad, in 1595, he found five Indian chiefs confined in a loathsome dungeon, nearly starved to death, whom he immediately liberated.

POLITICAL AND COLONIAL HISTORY. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;361

It was in February 1797, that Admiral Harvey with four British sail of the line appeared off Trinidad. The Spanish Admiral, instead of givingnbsp;battle to Harvey, burnt his own ships, and retreated to Port of Spain.nbsp;General Sir Ralph Abercrombie, at the head of 4000 men marched tonbsp;support the English Admiral, and after a few discharges of artillery,nbsp;Trinidad by capitulation became a British colony. In 1832, there werenbsp;between seven and eight hundred Caribs resident in Trinidad, and theynbsp;were fast decreasing. The white inhabitants are almost all descendantsnbsp;of Spaniards or French, and the Roman Catholic religion in consequencenbsp;greatly predominates in this island. The governor of Trinidad isnbsp;assisted by a legislative council of twelve members�but his powersnbsp;appear great. The laws are principally Spanish, executed after thenbsp;Spanish form. The value of exports from Trinidad, consisting of sugar,nbsp;molasses, rum, coffee, cocoa, and cotton, amounted in 1832 to upwardsnbsp;of �200,000.

No. 16. St. Lucia.�Various were the changes of masters undergone by this island�before its permanent settlement by the British. It wasnbsp;first taken by some Englishmen in the year 1639, but afterwards submitted to the French, and was several times lost and retaken by thatnbsp;nation, and was often by treaty declared a neutral island. At length,nbsp;the year 1803 left it an English Colony, with a French population, language, and manners, and in many respects with French feelings andnbsp;interests. The inhabitants have their affairs administered by a governornbsp;and a council, with French laws, so far as they are nbt contrary to thenbsp;British form of Justice.

No. 17. Bermudas.�This pleasant little cluster of lonely isles was settled by the English about the year 1612, and during the civil warsnbsp;and disturbances respecting religion which took place in England, theynbsp;became the asylum of many distinguished persons, among whom wasnbsp;the poet Waller, who celebrated these islands in one of his poems.nbsp;They were afterwards used by Great Britain as a penal settlement fornbsp;criminals ; but our Australian colonies have now superseded them innbsp;that respect. There is a dock-yard upon one of the islands, and thenbsp;ships engaged in the whale fishery of these seas, touch here for waternbsp;and refitting. St. George�s, the principal town, is a small place, andnbsp;the houses are built chiefly of wood.

No. 18. Hayti, or St. Domingo.�This large island was made the seat of his first American colony, by Columbus ;� who discovered it innbsp;1492. The natives, he and his followers, in their pursuit of gold, completely extirpated. In 1550, a daring band of French buccaneers, (ornbsp;pirates,) established themselves in the western part of the island, andnbsp;they were owned and supported by the French government ; who soon

became possessed of one half of the island,�the Spaniards retaining the remainder, which though largest in regard to extent of territory,nbsp;was much less valuable than the French side, in point of fertility. Tlienbsp;French Revolution in 1790, caused an extraordinary change in thenbsp;state of Hayti. In 1791, the convention (at Paris) caused to be proclaimed throughout the island, their favourite but erroneous doctrine,nbsp;that all men were free and equal. This proclamation gave rise, in thenbsp;first instance, to a contest between the whites and the free coloured andnbsp;mixed population. But while these two parties were contending fornbsp;the application of the principle, the negro slaves felt that it also appliednbsp;to them. They rose in a body, and (being of course far more numerous than all the rest of the inhabitants,) they massacred or drove outnbsp;the other two classes, and subsequently became entire masters of thenbsp;French part of St. Domingo. This revolution with the excesses accompanying it, soon ended, (like other revolutions) in a military despotism,nbsp;at the head of which in 1806, was Dessalines,�he was succeeded bynbsp;Christophe, his second in command, who named himself Henry I.nbsp;hereditary King of Hayti. Meanwhile the republic of Hayti wasnbsp;established in the southern part of the island, first under Petion, andnbsp;then under Boyer. The self-called Henry I. ended his own life bynbsp;suicide in 1820. Boyer, by good management and vigorous operations,nbsp;not only then gained the rule over all the French territory, but addednbsp;to it that part of the island belonging to the crown of Spain, so thatnbsp;the whole from that time has been included in the republic of Hayti.nbsp;France, in 1803, made strong efforts to regain this valuable island, butnbsp;without success. At length in 1825, she acknowledged by treatynbsp;the independence of Hayti, on condition of receiving from the freenbsp;blacks a large sum of money. An independent negro state was thusnbsp;established in St. Domingo ; but the people have not derived all thenbsp;benefits from their condition and free government that they expected.nbsp;They have not learnt to subject themselves to the restraints of regularnbsp;industry, and Hayti has been severely pressed by the enormous sum shenbsp;engaged to pay to France as the price of her independence. The exportation of sugar decreased immensely after Hayti became a republic.nbsp;The other exports are coffee, logwood, mahogany, and cotton. There arenbsp;six principal ports round the island�Port au Prince, is the largest city,nbsp;and contains about 15,000 inhabitants. Port Haytien and St. Domingo,nbsp;to the east, contain each about 10,000.*

No. 19. Cuba.�Spain long retained this large island, merely as the key of her continental possessions. During the last thirty years, and

especially since the separation of the South American Colonies from Spain, a hberal and protecting policy has been adopted by the Spanishnbsp;governments, the ports have been thrown open, and Havannah has nownbsp;no longer the monopoly of all the trade of the island. Strangers andnbsp;emigrants have settled in the country, both from Spain, from Hayti, andnbsp;from the continental states. The inhabitants have applied themselves tonbsp;the cultivation of sugar and coffee with success ; but unhappily throughnbsp;the active prosecution of the slave trade, which the Spaniards nefariouslynbsp;carry on to a great extent, often employing the American flag in ordernbsp;to elude the vigilance of the British cruizers�and most of their slavenbsp;ships are built at Baltimore in the United States.

No. 20. Porto Rico.�Till within the last fifty years, this island, which belongs to Spain, was equally neglected with Cuba; but since then, itnbsp;has greatly increased in value. Its principal productions are sugar,nbsp;coffee, cocoa, cotton, and tobacco.

No. 21. Guadaloupe, Martinique, Marigalante, and Deseada.�The.�c four French Islands produce sugar, coffee, and rum to the value ofnbsp;�6 or 700,000 annually. Port Royal, the capital of Martinique, andnbsp;the seat of the courts of justice, contains 10,000 inhabitants : and St.nbsp;Pierre has a most excellent harbour. Marigalante and Deseada arenbsp;very small islands, appendages to Guadaloupe, and of little importance.

No. 22. St. Thomas, St. Jan, St. Croix.�The latter alone is of any size or great value, and all three belong to Denmark, the governmentnbsp;is despotic, (according to Mr. J. J. Gurney.) No denominations ofnbsp;Christians, besides the Danish Lutheran Church, the Moravian, thenbsp;Roman Catholic, and the Church of England, are tolerated by law innbsp;these islands. Till very lately slaveiy was carried on here, and thenbsp;negroes were consequently in a degraded condition.*

No. 23. St. Martin, St. Eustatius, Saba, and Cura�oa.�These Dutch possessions compared with their eastern colonial empire appear exceedingly limited ; St. Eustatius is chiefly used for cultivating tobacco, andnbsp;rearing cattle and poultry for the use of the neighbouring islands. Thenbsp;population is estimated at 20,000 inhabitants.

No. 24. St. Bartholomew.�This small island is the only territory belonging to Sweden in the West Indies. Gustavia the capital, acquirednbsp;considerable wealth at the time when all the nations of Europe werenbsp;involved in war, as this was the only neutral port within these seas.

When Columbus first discovered the New World (as America and the islands adjacent, was then termed) he found the whole continentnbsp;and every island thickly peopled by dififerent classes of Indians, whonbsp;were, for the most part, of a copper or light bronze colour, with longnbsp;silky black hair, finely-formed limbs, and pleasing features ; while others,nbsp;known by the name of Caribs, were of a darker colour, and some werenbsp;nearly black ; but none had the thick lips, or short woollen hair of thenbsp;African negro. Some of these Indian races were of a mild and generous disposition, while others, chiefly those inhabiting the islands, werenbsp;ferocious and warlike, and some even were said to be cannibals. Withinnbsp;a few years after the discovery of the West India islands by the Spaniards, these native races had for the greater part perished,�millionsnbsp;of them had been swept from the earth, or sent to work in the goldnbsp;and silver mines of South America, where they sunk' into a prematurenbsp;grave, the victims of the avarice and cruelty of a mere handful of desperate adventurers, who, in their search for the gold that perisheth,nbsp;cared not what crimes they committed to attain their ends. When thenbsp;Spaniards found how rapidly the aboriginal (or Indian) population of the

West India islands perished under the system of forced labour they subjected them to, or sunk beneath the tyranny of their rule,�the expedient of introducing negro slaves from Africa was resorted to, and thusnbsp;began that most wicked and cruel of all the ungodly acts of fallen man,nbsp;the slave trade. The example of the Spaniards was soon followed bynbsp;the Portuguese, Dutch, French, and English nations : companies for thenbsp;horrid traffic were formed, monopohes granted, and kings, princes, andnbsp;nobles enriched their coffers with the price of human blood. The firstnbsp;instance of an Englishman purchasing negro slaves for the cultivation ofnbsp;land in the West Indies, was that of Sir John Hawkins, in 1562. Hisnbsp;conduct was displeasing to his mistress. Queen Elizabeth. Hall, thenbsp;naval historian, remarks on this fact : � Here began the horrid practicenbsp;of forcing the Africans into slavery, an injustice and barbarity, whichnbsp;win some day be the destruction of all who allow or encourage it.�nbsp;Since the first establishment of the slave-trade, about thirty millions ofnbsp;our fellow-creatures, it is calculated, have been dragged from theirnbsp;native homes, shipped like cattle, in chains, from the shores of Africa,nbsp;confined within the very narrow limits of the hold of the slave-ships,nbsp;and worked like the beasts of the field upon their arrival on the othernbsp;side the Atlantic, where they have been punished cruelly and barbarously,�sometimes even to death,� if they murmured forth a claim innbsp;behalf of humanity. If we study the pages of West Indian history, wenbsp;shall find nothing but wars, insurrections, crimes, misery, and vice.nbsp;Slavery, both Indian and negro, has been the curse of the West Indies ;nbsp;it has accompanied the white colonist, whether Spaniard, Frenchman, ornbsp;Briton, in his progress,�tainting like a plague his every effort. Half anbsp;million of negroes were imported into Jamaica from Africa betweennbsp;1700 and 1750 ; and between 1823 and 1832 no less than 325 regularnbsp;slave-ships left the harbour of Havannah, in the island of Cuba, for thenbsp;coasts of Africa : of these, 236 returned, bringing 100,000 slaves, thenbsp;remaining 89 were either captured or lost at sea. In 1730, the Legislative Government of Bermuda passed an act giving impunity to thenbsp;murderers of slaves. If, however, it could be proved that a person hadnbsp;wilfully and maliciously killed a slave, he was liable to be fined �10nbsp;towards the support of the government.*

^What a deplorable picture of society does this evince ! But, now ({Raised be the Lord, who alone can give � a new heart� and � a rightnbsp;spirit� to his rebellious creature, man) a glorious and happier era burstsnbsp;upon the western world, and liberty is the spirit it has awakened :nbsp;already her voice resounds along the beautiful hills and through the

fertile vailles of these verdant isles, and is swept over the ocean by Great Britain to the utmost region that owns her sway. England wasnbsp;the last nation in Europe to enter into that accursed traffic in humannbsp;beings,�to her honour be it said, she was the first to relinquish it.*

� It is a singular fact, which marks the hand of a Divine Providence, that on the very night the Act passed the British House of Commons,nbsp;which stated, � that from and after the 1st day of August, 1834, slaverynbsp;be and is utterly abolished and declared unlawful throughout the Britishnbsp;colonies, plantations, and possessions, abroad,��about the time thesenbsp;words of the enactment were being carried, the spirit of the ever-to-be-revered Mr. Wilberforce, left this world ! The day which saw thenbsp;termination of his labours for long-injured Africa, saw also the termination of his life,� and his entrance into the joy of his Lord, whom itnbsp;was his delight to serve, while living.f

It is too well known almost to be more than mentioned in this little work, that for many years during the laborious life of this truly greatnbsp;man, he zealously endeavoured to accomplish the abolition of the slave-trade, and at length in 1807, he achieved his object; but it must be distinctly borne in mind and understood that the abolishing by Act of Parliament the slave-trade, and the general abolishing of all slaverynbsp;throughout the colonies, are two perfectly different events, and unconnected with each other ; the first Act was passed, after many a hard-fought struggle, in 1807,�Mr. Wilberforce having been the mover andnbsp;chief promoter ; and the Act was a prohibition against the further importation into the colonies, of negroes from Africa ;�the latter Act wasnbsp;passed in 1834, and by this law all negro slaves were, after a period ofnbsp;apprenticeship, (named in the Act,) to be declared for ever free, and tonbsp;be placed on the same footing as paid labourers in England ; they werenbsp;no longer to be the property of their owners or masters, who in consequence of the loss of income which would at first ensue to them, werenbsp;granted by the British Parliament the sum of twenty millions of poundsnbsp;sterling, to remunerate them for their loss. This money was dividednbsp;between the planters of each colony, according to the number of slavesnbsp;each possessed. The term of apprenticeship for the slaves was at firstnbsp;fixed for six years, but the system was not found to work well, and thenbsp;term was shortened to four years ; at the expiration of which term, viz. innbsp;1838, the freedom of the negro in all the British colonies was complete.

The population of Guiana and the West India islands consists of three descriptions of people: 1. The Whites.�2. The free-coloured and mixednbsp;races.�3. The negroes. The whites, or Europeans (chiefly British),

* See Montgomery Martin on the West Indies. Sec � Missionary Register� for 1831, p. 24.5.

form but a small part of the whole number ; they consist partly of proprietors, superintending the cultivation of their own lands, partly of agents and overseers employed by owners residing in Britain. As anbsp;body they do not perhaps merit all the reproaches cast upon them bynbsp;the friends of humanity and freedom. Some of them in the days ofnbsp;slavery (now happily no more !) abused their excessive power over theirnbsp;unhappy slaves, in deeds of wanton cruelty which brought a stain uponnbsp;the whole body ; while others again, have distinguished themselves bynbsp;showing to their slaves every degree of kindness and indulgence, ofnbsp;which their situation admitted ; though, surely, history and biography,nbsp;and annals of missionary labour, will all alike testify, that little ornbsp;nothing was generally done by them for the spiritual and religious improvement of their unfortunate slaves : though here there are also somenbsp;bright examples to be met with of a contrary line of conduct. Thenbsp;negroes have always formed by far the largest proportion of the population of the West Indies, and their lot was, until the 1st of August,nbsp;1834, generally speaking, and with but few exceptions, a hard one,nbsp;depending entirely on the personal character of their masters or overseers, which, if good, they often enjoyed much comfort ; if otherwise,nbsp;they had no sufficient protection or redress against the bursts of passionnbsp;or caprice to which human nature, invested with uncontrolled power, isnbsp;always liable.

Manufacturing industry, from the peculiar state of society in these islands, scarcely exists, even in its humblest form, for domestic uses,�nbsp;England supplying her West Indian colonies with every article of dress,nbsp;and many of food, and also of the necessaries and luxuries of life.nbsp;Commerce, on the contrary, is carried on in these islands, to a muchnbsp;greater extent, than in any other country of the same wealth and populousness. Almost every production of labour in the West India islandsnbsp;is destined for the market of the mother country. They supply thenbsp;British empire with nearly all the sugar, rum, and coffee consumed in it,nbsp;and a great portion of her raw cotton ; also cocoa, indigo, spices, andnbsp;mahogany in great quantities. The West Indies also trade very extensively with our colonies in North America, and with the United States,nbsp;from whence they receive in return, fish, timber, grain, and provisions.

The cessation of slavery in these colonies has been marked by no anarchy, no bloodshed, no rebellion, but by a decrease of crime on thenbsp;part of the negroes, and by a marked improvement in substantial prosperity. Some difficulties have occurred, especially in Jamaica, betweennbsp;the planters and labourers, but these are not to be attributed to thenbsp;abolition of slavery,* but rather to the four years of apprenticeship, bynbsp;* See Buxton�s � Slave Trade and its Remedies,� 1840, p, ,528.

which all parties were disturbed, and in some degree unfitted for any new relations to each other.*

A description of the manners and dress of the negroes in the West Indies is almost uncalled-for here, as they assume in a great degreenbsp;European costumes and habits. The negroes are very fond of finerynbsp;and gay colours. Since their complete emancipation in 1838, there hasnbsp;been a much greater demand on the part of the free labourers for imported goods than before, especially for articles of dress. Mr. Gurneynbsp;mentions (in his � Winter in the West Indies,� 1840) that he formednbsp;� one of a sabbath congregation of nearly 3000 black people, chieflynbsp;emancipated slaves, attired after their favourite costume in neat whitenbsp;raiment, and most respectable and orderly in their demeanour and appearance. Christian marriages are now frequent and common amongnbsp;them. The dress of the bridegroom on these occasions, is that of anbsp;blue coat, handsome waistcoat, white pantaloons, and Wellington boots !nbsp;the bride being often arrayed in a vast silk bonnet and white muslinnbsp;dress ! � The quantity of bread and meat used by the negroes is alsonbsp;surprizingly increased since slavery was put an end to, so that thenbsp;imports of numerous articles of British manufactures are considerablynbsp;greater now than before 1838. � I visited ,� says Mr. Gurney, � severalnbsp;negro cottages, in company with the rector of the parish, and was surprized at the excellence of their dwellings, and the neat furniture whichnbsp;they contained.� They hkewise cultivate provisions for themselves on anbsp;much larger scale than was done in the days of slavery, and accordingnbsp;to the writer last quoted, they are � an industrious and contentednbsp;people, and gradually accumulating wealth.� Their morals generallynbsp;are much improved, and crime is very much lessened since their emancipation, if we may judge by the very small proportion now found innbsp;the jails and houses of correction, compared to former years of slavery.nbsp;Many of the members of the lower Legislative House of Assembly, innbsp;Jamaica, are black or coloured men, duly chosen by the freeholders ofnbsp;the island, and are found staunch supporters of the Home Government,nbsp;Of one of these, Mr. Gurney thus speaks, � -----is a young man, with

the wool of Africa on his head, but full of bodily and mental energy, and ardent in the cause of religion and humanity.� Of another, who isnbsp;likewise the owner of a large estate, he says, � he is an intelligent person, a member of the Legislature, and much respected in the colony.�nbsp;The black people who were free before the date of emancipation, usednbsp;to consider it below their dignity to work on the estates. Field-labournbsp;now being no longer the work of slaves, is not held to be disgraceful.

See � A Winter in the West Indies, in 1839 ;ind 1840,� by J. J. Gurney, Esq.

Their provision-grounds in the free (British) islands, are often very productive, yielding sometimes �20 or �25 yearly income. The negroes are by no means given to intemperance, but often keep a little wine ornbsp;spirits in their cottages, for their own use in times of hard work, or fornbsp;entertaining their friends (being of a very social, convivial turn) ; butnbsp;this is a luxury, it is to be hoped, may soon be changed for domesticnbsp;comforts of a more desirable character. It appears perfectly marvellousnbsp;what some of them will subscribe towards their missionaries, or chapels.nbsp;Mr. Gurney mentions a negro man and wife,�he a blacksmith, and thenbsp;woman a pedler, who had saved �100 sterling in a little more than twonbsp;years for their own missionaries, and were subscribing �10 per annum,nbsp;to the cause of missions ! *

In the Section upon the Political History of the West Indies, we alluded to the frequent slave-insurrections which formerly, in times ofnbsp;slavery and cruelty, often occurred in these islands. Mr. Gurney thusnbsp;alludes to the happy change that has taken place in these beautiful colonies since the date of freedom. � During slavery, the planters andnbsp;their families were on the edge of a volcano which might any day explode, and has often only been prevented from exploding by the unrivallednbsp;patience and forbearance of the negro race. But now, under freedom,nbsp;the volcano is extinguished and the planters are in perfect safety,�thenbsp;protecting arm of the state (the military) is now no longer required, andnbsp;to a great extent it has already been withdrawn. Certainly, there is nonbsp;antipathy of the blacks towards the whites, but rather the feelings ofnbsp;respect, deference, and affection ; and on the other hand, the prejudicenbsp;of the whites against the blacks is greatly on the decline. All are nownbsp;on one political level ; and the influence of each individual, whethernbsp;black, brown, or white, is left to depend upon the grounds of property,nbsp;talent, education, and character.!

* The same writer also mentions a case of one of the negro congregations, in the course of three years and a half subscribing the sum of �2,600 for the support of theirnbsp;missionary and other expenditure of the mission : and another most interesting circumstance was related to him by the rector of Montserrat�that of the negroes attending hisnbsp;church having, in the year 1839, � insisted on expressing., by some thank-offering., their gra-iitttde to God for the blessings they were enjoying under freedom.'''* They subscribednbsp;�15:15, to be expended in a silver goblet for the communion-table. See Gurney�snbsp;� Winter in the West Indies,� p. 51.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Ibid.

f nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Very little need be said on this division of our chapter, as the super

stitious worship of the negroes of Western Africa, from whence the West India slaves have been brought, has already been detailed innbsp;Chap. �. ; but we will make a few very brief extracts from a valuablenbsp;work lately published by J. M. Philippo, missionary in Jamaica, uponnbsp;the heathen state of the negro slaves in our West India colonies, in thenbsp;150 years previous to any missionary exertions being undertaken innbsp;their behalf. � Most of the negroes appear to have possessed somenbsp;notions of a Supreme Being, though their ideas of the Deity were verynbsp;absurd and unbecoming. From the frequency of hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes in the West Indies, they associated with thenbsp;character of the Most High all the base passions of a vindictive andnbsp;capricious mortal. Hence their devotion proceeded completely fromnbsp;terror. They had their own priests and leaders among themselves, andnbsp;some professed to be Roman Catholics, and others to belong to thenbsp;Coptic and Abyssinian churches, and some were Mahommedans ; probably according to the part of Africa from whence they came. Somenbsp;were Polytheists and some Atheists ; but most of them were idolaters,nbsp;and worshipped the rude stone or block their own hands had fashioned,nbsp;adding often snakes and reptiles to their list of deities. Dreams andnbsp;visions were fundamental articles of their creed ; and when any werenbsp;sick, the minister, or father (usually a free black), anointed the sufferernbsp;with oil, singing some ditty all the while, in which he was joined in loudnbsp;chorus by the bystanders. Many of these priests, from ambitious ornbsp;pecuniary motives, acquired a knowledge of the formularies of thenbsp;English Church, and at the conclusion of the war with America, somenbsp;who had been imported from thence, assumed the office of teachers,nbsp;and disseminated their pernicious follies. They seldom delivered theirnbsp;instructions without a book, representing it to be the Bible, although itnbsp;happened more frequently to be some other book. To such a deplorable extent did they carry these superstitious practices, and so great wasnbsp;the ignorance of both people and pretended priests, that, in the absencenbsp;of better information, as to what was to be sung in their religious assemblies, they were in the habit of singing the childish story of � The Housenbsp;that Jack built,� probably learnt from the children of their Englishnbsp;masters. These are facts which the writer has repeatedly gatherednbsp;from some of the parties themselves.�

amusement, rioting, or working on their provision-grounds. When the gospel at length was brought to them, the negroes manifested generallynbsp;great anxiety to hear it, and thousands, on hearing, believed to thenbsp;salvation of their souls.

� J father of the fatherless, and a judge of tlic widows, is God in his holy habitation. God setteth the solitary in families : he bringeth out those which are bound with chains. . . .nbsp;Thou hast led captivity captive : thou hast received gifts for men ; yea, for the rebelliousnbsp;also, that the Lord God might dwell among them.quot; Psalm Ixviii. 5, 6, 18.

If we turn to the statistical table at the commencement of this chapter, we shall find that 1624 was the dgte of England�s first acquisition ofnbsp;territory in the West Indies, and 1803 was that of the latest. Now thisnbsp;embraces a period of 179 years ; and up to the year 1754, nothing hadnbsp;been attempted for the religious conversion of the negro population ofnbsp;these islands. It is true that as early as the year 1732, two Moraviannbsp;brethren had undertaken a mission to St. Thomas, one of the smallnbsp;islands belonging to the crown of Denmark ; but we are speaking ofnbsp;the British West Indies,�and here is a sad picture indeed of the religious destitution of the blacks who were working for the benefit of thenbsp;mother-country, and enriching her people with wealth and luxuries.nbsp;The first attempt to instruct the negro population of our West Indianbsp;colonies was made by the Moravian Brethren, four of whom � went tonbsp;Jamaica in 1754, in compliance with the wishes of some proprietors innbsp;one of the country parishes.� *

We will present to our reader a few short extracts from this last-named work, showing what were the prevailing ideas entertained respecting the instruction of the negroes in the West Indies, previous to any missionary exertions being undertaken in these islands. � For morenbsp;than one hundred years after Jamaica became an appendage of the Britishnbsp;crown, scarcely an effort was made to Christianize the negro slaves ;nbsp;and although in 1696, in William and Mary�s reign, an act was passed,nbsp;at the instigation of the British Parliament, by the legislature in Jamaica,nbsp;directing that all slave-owners should instruct their negroes, and baptize them � when fit for it ; � it proved a dead letter, and was nothingnbsp;more than a political manoeuvre to prevent the interference of Greatnbsp;Britain in the management of the slaves. In answer to inquiries madenbsp;by the British Parliament in 1760, regarding the religious instruction of

the slaves, Mr. Wedderburn and Mr. Fuller gave the following evidence before a committee of the House of Commons : � There are a few properties on which there are Moravian parsons, but in general there is nonbsp;religious instruction.� ' When I first landed in Jamaica in 1789,� saysnbsp;Dr. Coke, � both whites and blacks, to the number of 300,000, werenbsp;evidently living � without hope and without God in the world.� Bothnbsp;the form and the power of godliness, except in some few solitary instances, were totally unknown. Iniquity prevailed in aU its forms.�nbsp;� As to sending missionaries to the Africans in the West Indies,� saysnbsp;Mr. Edwards in the British House of Commons, in 1796, � I speaknbsp;from my own knowledge when I say that they are cannibals, and thatnbsp;instead of listening to a missionary, they would certainly eat him.� Thus,nbsp;it may emphatically be said, that � Darkness covered the land, and grossnbsp;darkness the people.� There were, in the year 1800, twenty churchesnbsp;in Jamaica, but these would only hold from 100 to 150 each, andnbsp;seldom were they ever opened all in one day, and this among a population then amounting to 400,000 souls ! In 1816, owing to public discussions which took place in England, a curate was added to each ofnbsp;the twenty-one parishes, but even after this, the spiritual instruction ofnbsp;the slaves seems hardly to have been contemplated, as is proved bynbsp;returns made in 1805 to the colonial secretary at home, by West Indiannbsp;clergymen themselves : one said, � It is impossible for white men tonbsp;make themselves understood by the Africans.� � Such,� says Mr. Long,nbsp;* is their barbarous stupidity and ignorance of the English language,nbsp;which makes them quite incapable of understanding or reasoning uponnbsp;what is said to them, that it would fail the most zealous endeavours.�*nbsp;The fact was, religion and slavery can never exist together; and had thenbsp;West Indian planters taken the Bible in their hands to offer to theirnbsp;poor despised slaves, they must at once have laid down the whip andnbsp;the fetters.

No. 1. Barbadoes.�The Moravians, or United Brethren, were the first Protestant Christians who attempted a mission to the negroes onnbsp;this island, Mr. Bruchshaw arrived in 1767, and his design being

* By the West Indian laws and customs, the negro was considered (before emancipation) the servant of his master from the dawn of day to the setting of the sun : if, then, they were taught at all, it must have been between sunset and sunrise. The missionariesnbsp;endeavoured, in consequence, to teach them during that time ; when an edict was issuednbsp;by one of the Colonial Assemblies, prohibiting all instruction from sunset to sunrise.nbsp;This edict being resisted, Mr. Grindall, a missionary, was committed to the horrors of anbsp;West Indian dungeon, and there he died! (See � Missionary Register� for 1830,p. 257.)nbsp;And the � Missionary Register� for 1832 contains much painful statement of the persecutions endured in Jamaica by the missionaries of various societies, with a full vindication of the characters of the accused.

approved by the president of the council and the resident clergy, he commenced preaching to the negroes at Bridgetown, and was soonnbsp;joined by a brother missionary from North America. Six negroes werenbsp;baptized, and some of the planters invited the Brethren to preach uponnbsp;their estates. But things did not wear so good an aspect long ; anbsp;variety of difficulties arose, the slaves absented themselves from theirnbsp;chapel, and the missionaries, though labouring for their daily subsistence, were obliged, by reason of pecuniary embarassments, to leave thenbsp;island. The planters too became averse to the instruction of theirnbsp;slaves, and, in 1780, a tremendous hurricane involved both missionariesnbsp;and hearers in one common distress. In 1790, however, circumstancesnbsp;appeared more favourable, the congregations increased, some of thenbsp;planters laid aside their prejudices, and the local government treated thenbsp;missionaries with kindness. The missionaries bought a small estate innbsp;1794, which they named � Sharon.� In 1798, a Moravian, named Waller,nbsp;(with his wife and sister), from Bristol, after imminent perils and dangers by sea, arrived at Barbadoes to strengthen the mission. In 1817,nbsp;the members were 214 in number, of whom 68 had been admitted to thenbsp;Lord�s table ; but the whole number of negroes baptized since the commencement of the mission was then only 480. In 1825, Mr. Brumnernbsp;writes, � We meet with no opposition, and several places have invitednbsp;me to make known the glad tidings among the negroes. It is truenbsp;various difficulties exist in the usages of society in this island among thenbsp;negro slaves, and one is the � Sunday-markets,� and the dancing andnbsp;revelling which prevail through the Sabbath.� Notwithstanding this,nbsp;we find that the Brethren�s congregations, in 1827, had increased to 464nbsp;members. In 1831, the Brethren had four missionaries in Barbadoes,nbsp;and 915 converts, and they have continued ever since to increasenbsp;steadily.

The Wesleyans were the next denomination of Christians who sent instructors to Barbadoes. In 1788, Dr. Coke visited this island, andnbsp;left Mr. Pearce here as missionary. The authorities of the island werenbsp;not unfavourable to his preaching the gospel among the negroes, notwithstanding he met with very great opposition ; so that, in 1791, henbsp;was obhged to give up his post to a fresh missionary. The Blacks nownbsp;showed great indifference, and the mission for many years languished.nbsp;A rebellion, in 1816, was charged against the Wesleyans, although theynbsp;had only at this time thirty-six converts out of a population of 71,215nbsp;Blacks, and not one missionary was then on the island! In 1832, thenbsp;committee of the Wesleyan Missionary Society writes, � that the blessingnbsp;of God is to be seen in the ultimate failure of every opposition raisednbsp;against it, and in the protection afforded by a paternal government to

their persecuted missionaries and the statistical mission-table shows they have now upwards of 1400 members in Barbadoes.

Early in the eighteenth century (in the reign of Queen Anne) Colonel Codrington bequeathed two estates in Barbadoes to the � Society fornbsp;the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts,� to be applied to thenbsp;religious instruction of the negroes in this and the other West Indianbsp;islands, and for endowing a college in Bridgetown, Barbadoes. In 1830,nbsp;the funds of this charity, amounting to �2500, was made available to thenbsp;preparation of twelve candidates for holy orders, in addition to the instruction of negroes.* The negroes on these estates were quiet andnbsp;peaceable during the dreadful insurrections of 1816, which helped tonbsp;lessen the prevailing prejudices against religious instruction. Emancipation has worked well in this island, and was anticipated upon thenbsp;Codrington estates by the managers letting out plots of land to thenbsp;negroes before the Act took effect, for which they willingly gave fournbsp;days� work as rent. There are thirty-three clergymen of the Church ofnbsp;England in the island, of which all are paid in part, or wholly, by thenbsp;Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. The Church Missionary Society has supported schools in Barbadoes for many years ; these in 1825nbsp;contained 158 scholars. In 181 7, an Auxiliary to the Bible Society wasnbsp;formed, which has been the means of diffusing much light among thenbsp;slaves in Barbadoes.t

No. 2. SZ. Christopher's.�ITe United Brethren in Antigua having been repeatedly solicited to extend their missionary labours to thisnbsp;island, Messrs. Birkby and Gotwald were sent here in 1777. Althoughnbsp;countenanced by many of the proprietors, the progress of the Gospelnbsp;among the negro slaves was but slow at first, and in 1784, the numbernbsp;of converts did not exceed forty. In 1785 the Brethren purchased anbsp;piece of ground for a regular settlement, and built a church, which wasnbsp;soon so numerously attended, that a second became necessary. Thisnbsp;was completed in 1789,�the believing negroes freely giving theirnbsp;labour and their money to aid in the work ; and a subscription was alsonbsp;sent for the same purpose by the negroes of Antigua. The number ofnbsp;baptized slaves amounted in a short time to 279. The sacred flamenbsp;now kindled in the island continued to spread, till in the course of a fewnbsp;years the Brethren�s congregation of converted negroes at St. Kitt�snbsp;amounted to 2500, and the attendance on public worship, both on thenbsp;sabbath and on week-days, was much greater than their churches couldnbsp;contain. In 1792, the work of the Lord in the Brethren�s hands con-

* The number of clergy educated at Codrington College, between 1825 and 1840, is 46. t See Missionary Register.� Also Williams�s � Missionary Gazetteer,� andnbsp;Brown�s � History of Missions.�

tinned to prosper, and they had the privilege granted them of preaching to the negroes upon no less than fifty estates. In 1824, they had innbsp;Basseterre alone, 3000 souls under their care, and 1858 at their othernbsp;station of Bethesda.

The Wesleyans, under Dr. Coke, first visited St. Kitt�s in 1787, and three missionaries were left hy him on the island. These received considerable encouragement from some gentlemen of Basseterre, and also from the clergyman of the parish. In 1789, Dr.nbsp;Coke again visited the island, and was, as he says, � personally convincednbsp;of the great benefits that had resulted from the introduction of thenbsp;Gospel.� The negroes thronged to hear the word of God ; and as anbsp;proof that many of them had really protitted from the instructions theynbsp;had received, it was found that they might safely be entrusted with armsnbsp;for the protection of the colony, when an attack was anticipated fromnbsp;the combined forces of France and Spain.* In 1816, the Wesleyannbsp;missionaries write, � During the late festival (Christmas), when the negroes have a week�s hohday, such multitudes assembled for prayer andnbsp;praise, as truly astonished us. Contrasting their conduct now withnbsp;what it used to be at this season, before the introduction of the Gospelnbsp;among them, we cannot but exclaim, � What hath God wrought ! �nbsp;In 1825, the Wesleyan chapel at Basseterre was consecrated, the governor attending, who had also contributed to its erection. In 1828, thenbsp;Wesleyan schools at St. Kitt�s contained 1388 children. (This statement probably includes the sabbath-school children.) When at lengthnbsp;the happy time arrived for the negro to be made free, the gloomy anticipations of those who thought they would not work unless they werenbsp;compelled, were completely disproved in St. Kitt�s,�for as one of thenbsp;missionaries remarked, � the change for the better among the negroesnbsp;was prodigious and a stipendiary magistrate told Mr. Gurney, duringnbsp;his visit to St. Kitt�s in 1840, � They will do an infinity of work fornbsp;wages.� This writer says in his Winter in the West Indies, � Wenbsp;visited the school at Cayon under the care of Brother Munzer, in whichnbsp;he had 300 children, whom we examined, and their answers to our questions were lively and correct. Crime and petty ofiences in St. Kitt�s arenbsp;greatly diminished since the date of full freedom (1838). There arenbsp;nine churches under the establishment, and seven clergymen ; six Methodist chapels, and three Moravian institutions. In 1832, the Rev.nbsp;James Thompson, agent of the British and Foreign Bible Society, proceeded in that capacity to the West Indies, and formed auxiliaries at St.nbsp;Kitt�s, Nevis, Montserrat, and Dominica ; and likewise made arrangements for supplying Guadaloupe and Martinique with French Bibles.

No. 3. Nevis.�The Rev. Dr. Coke, of the Wesleyan Society, esta-bhshed a mission here in 1788, and very happy effects followed the undertaking. From 1803 to 1810 the average numbers of converts was 1200. About the year 1827 a free school was formed on this islandnbsp;under the patronage of the Bishop of Barbadoes. The Society for thenbsp;Conversion of Negro Slaves has laboured in Nevis with considerablenbsp;success. There are two clergymen of the Church of England in thisnbsp;island.*

No. 4. Antigua.�In January 1756, Samuel Isles, one of the United Brethren�s missionaries in St. Thomas, proceeded to Antigua with thenbsp;view of beginning a mission on that island. He and his wife werenbsp;attacked with sickness soon after their arrival, ana were in want even ofnbsp;the necessaries of life ; yet they were not discouraged, trusting thatnbsp;though they � sowed in tears, they should reap in joy.� For somenbsp;years their labours seemed to be accompanied with little success ; butnbsp;at length (in 1770) the clouds of darkness were dispelled and usherednbsp;in a glorious morning. At this time the number of their hearers increased so much, that it was necessary to enlarge their chapel, uponnbsp;which occasion, as also in building a new one shortly after, the poornbsp;negroes manifested an extraordinary zeal and energy. Many of thenbsp;planters became now convinced of the beneficial effects of the Gospel onnbsp;their slaves ; but others were stUl violent persecutors of the truth. Innbsp;1788, the Brethren�s two congregations of St.John�s and Gracehill,nbsp;contained upwards of 6000 members, and zealous and useful assistantsnbsp;were found among the converted slaves, to visit the sick, give advicenbsp;and reproof if needed, and to report the state of the congregations tonbsp;the missionaries. In 1810, the Brethren commenced a Sunday schoolnbsp;at St. John�s on the Lancastrian plan, and the number of scholars soonnbsp;amounted to 700 ; they also opened a day school at GracehUl, wherenbsp;the scholars were instructed during one day in the week ; such wasnbsp;� the day of small things� in Antigua�the island in which perhapsnbsp;missionary labour has been more extended and more blessed than in anynbsp;other of our West India islands. In 1817 the Moravians were encouraged to form a fourth settlement by the solicitation of the Colonialnbsp;Government, who presented the Society with ten acres of land andnbsp;�1000 towards building a church and dwelling-houses, and with �300nbsp;per annum towards the maintenance of the missionaries. July 11, 1823,nbsp;the Brethren celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of theirnbsp;first church at St. John�s, when it was found that there had been baptized during that period (in the town alone) 16,099 negroes, and that

* See Williams's � Missionary Gazetteer;� and Brown�s � History of Missions.'

thirty-five male and as many female missionaries had there been employed, in making known the way of salvation to their benighted fellowcreatures. In 1825, the devoted missionary Richter was removed by death after thirty years� labour in Antigua,�an instance among manynbsp;others, of the Lord�s protecting arm in these unfavourable climates overnbsp;his faithful and devoted servants. In 1827, the number of communicants belonging to the Brethren�s churches in Antigua was 2360,�aboutnbsp;half the present number.

In 1787, two Wesleyan missionaries were stationed in this island by Dr. Coke, and their labours were attended with great success. In 1816,nbsp;Antigua was placed under martial law, in consequence of an insurrectionnbsp;that had broken out in Barbadoes. It is not more strange than truenbsp;that some persons think religion seditious, and that instruction to thenbsp;negroes is likely to bring about revolt. A gentleman who entertainednbsp;these ideas in Antigua, in 1816, assembled his negroes and told themnbsp;what had taken place at Barbadoes, when, to his astonishment theynbsp;observed, � Massa, dem have no religion den.�

Mr. William Dawes, a member of the Committee of the Church Missionary Society, being about to settle in Antigua in 1814, was at his own request appointed by that Society a gratuitous catechist and correspondent. In 1817, Mr. Thwaites and his wife were appointed superintendent of the Church Missionary schools, now estabhshed in the island,nbsp;in which work they were aided by Mr. Anderson and his wife, people ofnbsp;colour. Between 1817 and 1823 the Church Missionary Society�s schoolsnbsp;were increased to ten in number, and contained 1862 scholars. Thesenbsp;means of instruction had, under the Divine blessing, many happy results,nbsp;in improving the moral and rehgious conditions of the negroes of Antigua.* There are seven parish churches in Antigua, and two chapels,nbsp;one of which was buUt by Mr. Gilbert, a planter, for the use of thenbsp;negroes on his own estate. There are eleven clergy of the Establishednbsp;Church in the island, of whom two are supported by the Society for thenbsp;Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.f Emancipation has beennbsp;much blessed in this island, the amount of crime is lessened, and thenbsp;state of morals generally much improved since its date. It is a cheeringnbsp;fact that there are in Antigua no less than 7000 scholars in the variousnbsp;charity and missionary schools for negro children : the Mico-charity-normal school at St. John�s is extensively useful. There are now fournbsp;bishops of the Estabhshed Church in the West Indies,�viz., Jamaica,nbsp;Barbadoes, Antigua, and British Guiana.

* See Williams�s � Missionary Gazetteer,� the � Missionary Register,� and Brown�s � History of Missions.� t See Coleridge�s � Six Months in the West Indies.�

No. 5. Anguilla.�The Wesleyans have a congregation in this island, where they have been long estabhshed. There is also one clergyman ofnbsp;the establishment.

No. 6. Jamaica.�In the year 1754, The United Brethren (or Moravians) sent a missionary named Caries, with two assistants, to Jamaica, at the request of some proprietors in the island. These gentlemen builtnbsp;the missionaries a house, and granted full permission to their slaves tonbsp;attend to their instructions. In consequence of which, the negroesnbsp;flocked to the brethren in such numbers that within about a year, theirnbsp;hearers amounted to about 800. In 1770, after the death of one of thenbsp;brethren named Schlegel, the mission sunk into a languishing state, andnbsp;many of the negroes relapsed into their old pagan practices. In 1804,nbsp;the whole number of negroes baptized by the brethren on this islandnbsp;was only about 900 ; aftelt; this some of the principal planters undertooknbsp;to provide for the support of an increased number of missionaries�andnbsp;in 1821, the brethren had three settlements in the island, besidesnbsp;preaching places on a number of their plantations ; their fourth stationnbsp;was commenced in 1826, when their congregations had considerably increased, and they have now many large and flourishing settlements.

The Wesleyan Missionary Society, stationed a missionary at Kingstown in Jamaica in 1789; they experienced from the first, very great opposition from the white proprietors on the island, and a succession ofnbsp;harassing laws were passed for many years by the local legislature ofnbsp;Jamaica, for the purpose of putting a stop to the preaching of thenbsp;gospel by the Wesleyans. The lives of the missionaries were often innbsp;jeopardy, several times they were imprisoned most unjustly, and theynbsp;were strictly prohibited from admitting the negroes into their houses ornbsp;chapels. This persecution seems to have a good deal ceased in 1815,nbsp;when the missionaries received invitations from several of the plantersnbsp;to preach to their negroes, and the prejudices formerly so violent andnbsp;bitter against them, seemed gradually to die away. During the firstnbsp;twenty years of the mission, the members of the Methodist Society innbsp;Jamaica seldom exceeded a thousand, but during the eleven years afternbsp;the date of 1810, the members increased from 900 to 7,676. The persecutions alluded to were in some degree checked by the governmentnbsp;at home, and by an order from the King in council to all governors ofnbsp;the West India Islands, forbidding them to give their assent to any lawnbsp;relative to religion, until the bill had been transmitted to England, andnbsp;the royal pleasure known thereupon. Notwithstanding this, the colonialnbsp;legislature of Jamaica, again in 1826, commenced their persecutingnbsp;system, by passing a new law,� 1st, to prohibit slaves from teaching ornbsp;preaching ; 2nd, to forbid any minister to open hi,s place of worship be-

tween sun-set or sun-rise, (this was the only time the slaves could then call their own) ; and 3rd, that religious teachers taking money fromnbsp;slaves should be fined �20 for each offence, or imprisoned in default ofnbsp;payment.� This law was disallowed in England by his Majesty innbsp;council.*

The Baptists established a mission in Jamaica, about the year 1814. They have now flourishing congregations in most parts of the Island.

In 1826, The Church Missionary Society first opened schools in Jamaica at Papine estate near Kingston, and at Salt Savannah, undernbsp;the superintendance of the Bishops of Jamaica and Barbadoes, and innbsp;the following year, it sent two catechists to labour in the island. Innbsp;1831, this Society had sixteen schools in Jamaica and Antigua, containing 1500 scholars, and in 1835, added a missionary and four catechistsnbsp;to Jamaica. In 1836, in consequence of the passing of the Emancipation Act, the Church Missionary Society took active measures fornbsp;enlarging its operations in this island, and five missionaries werenbsp;sent here. In 1837, this Society had twenty-eight schools, and upwards of 2000 scholars in Jamaica. One of the missionaries thusnbsp;writes, in 1838��Though I have my share of disappointments, fears,nbsp;and conflicts, I have also had abundant cause for thankfulness. Mynbsp;congregations continue to increase, and what is infinitely more satisfactory, the knowledge of Christ crucified is gaining ground. Thenbsp;negroes frequently say, when feeling the suitableness of Jesus to theirnbsp;wants, � O minister, this too sweet ! � � How kind of God to makenbsp;us know and love what we never heard of before ! � Another missionary, (of the Church Missionary Society), in prospect of the approachingnbsp;important 1st of August, 1838, thus writes��The memorable daynbsp;win be ushered in next week�a day which shall terminate a period ofnbsp;cruel slavery, that for nearly 300 years has cursed these beautifulnbsp;islands ! It is appointed to be a day of general thanksgiving. Thenbsp;negroes are making great preparation for their rejoicings.� On thenbsp;14th, the same missionary adds, � The great change from slavery andnbsp;apprenticeship to complete and universal freedom has taken place.nbsp;The 1st of August quot;was kept most sacredly by the negro population, allnbsp;places of worship were filled to overflowing, and the day wore thenbsp;appearance of a Lord�s day. Nothing like riot took place, it is saidnbsp;that there was not a single complaint at the police-office next morning.nbsp;Even on the 2nd of August, (which was also a day of festivity), in thenbsp;midst of music, fireworks, and illuminations, there was a strong feelingnbsp;of thankfulness to God in the minds of many, evinced by audible ejacu-

lations of praise. In riding home at night, the usual answer to our salutations, was, �Ah, minister, for me Saviour very good; me nevernbsp;think to see this day. Bless God, massa, bless God ! It is too good,nbsp;too good.� * The Church estabhshment in Jamaica is now so muchnbsp;more effective than formerly, that the Church Missionary Society hasnbsp;lately withdrawn some of its missionaries, as being more needed in othernbsp;quarters.

Education among the negroes has made very great progress since the date of freedom, and the clergy of the Established Church nownbsp;number eighty individuals, sixteen of whom are paid by the Societynbsp;for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign parts. Before 1838,nbsp;the bishop�s efforts for the religious and literary instruction of thenbsp;blacks had been comparatively useless. To use his own expression,nbsp;� his arm had been palsied by the influence of slavery.� f � Sincenbsp;I came here in 1834, (says Dr. Stewart, a stipendiary clergyman innbsp;1840), my Church has been twice enlarged, and the congregationnbsp;has increased from 300 to 1600 at least. I have also built anothernbsp;Church in my parish capable of holding 600 more, which is alwaysnbsp;full. The communicants have increased from 27 to 289. During thenbsp;same period, two very large Moravian chapels have been erected in mynbsp;district. In the last six years of slavery, the number of marriages atnbsp;my church was 421 ; in five and a half years of partial or entire freedom, 2014 ! When I came here, I found two adult negroes whonbsp;could read a little, but there was no school in the parish, now more thannbsp;100 adults can read, and almost all the rising generation, and schoolsnbsp;are rapidly increasing.� J

The London Missionary Society began its labours in Jamaica in 1834, by sending six missionaries there. Their number has sincenbsp;greatly increased,�and they have now many large congregations andnbsp;effective schools in the island. The Bible Society has done much fornbsp;Jamaica and other West Indian Islands. Mr. Wheeler, the agent, relates in 1838, the following instance of an aged negro at Kingstown,nbsp;� I called, says he, upon an old man, 107 years of age, his woolly hairnbsp;as white as snow ; he was reading a Bible that he had given him fromnbsp;our Society. He said, who gave him that Bible, gave him his life. Itnbsp;was all his comfort. � I read,� said he, � a chapter, and then God talksnbsp;to me ; I shut my book, and then I talk with God.� �

No 7. The Virgin Isles.�Tortola is the only considerable island of this group belonging to Great Britain, (the other two of any size, St.

See Gurney�s � Winter in the West Indies.� nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� Ibid. p. 151.

Tliomas, and St. Jan, belong to Denmark, and will be spoken of in another place). In Tortola, the Wesleyan Missionary Society has anbsp;considerable body of converted blacks under its care. So effectualnbsp;have been the labours of these devoted missionaries, that they numbernbsp;now 2000 members of their Church, nearly a third of the whole population. In Tortola is a settlement of several hundred blacks, takennbsp;out of captured slave-ships, and located on a tract of land allotted themnbsp;by government. A Church was built for them in 1840, under the ordersnbsp;of the Bishop of Barbadoes, and a school has been formed for theirnbsp;children. Mr. Gurney, who visited these islands in 1840, remarks,nbsp;�The African mind is abundantly susceptible of instruction in the greatnbsp;doctrines and principles of the Christian religion. We could not butnbsp;observe here, that freedom is working well as a handmaid to religion.�nbsp;There is one clergyman of the Church of England in the Virginnbsp;Isles.

No. 8. Tobago.�The United Brethren were invited to commence a mission here in 1789, by Mr. Hamilton, a planter�after meeting withnbsp;but little success, in about fifteen or twenty years they gave up thenbsp;mission. The Wesleyan Society sent two missionaries to Tobago, whonbsp;were well received by the planters�but in proportion to the number ofnbsp;inhabitants, they do not seem to have met with very great success.nbsp;There were two clergymen of the Estabhshed Church in Tobago innbsp;1842.

No. 9. Honduras.�� If we wish to find any of the Aboriginal races, who once occupied the West India Islands, we must proceed to Honduras Bay, where the Wesleyan Missionary Society had, previously tonbsp;1838, erected a chapel for the remnants of this people; who are callednbsp;� Mosquito Indians,� from the name of the shore or coast upon whichnbsp;they reside : this is the first place of worship we presume was ever built fornbsp;the Aborigines of our West Indian Colonies.� * The Baptist Missionary Society sent a missionary to Belize, the chief town in the Britishnbsp;settlement of Honduras, chiefly for the instruction of the logwoodcutters and English settlers�and some disbanded African soldiers, whonbsp;had been located here. In 1842, they had extended their labours tonbsp;the Carib Indians, had translated the Gospel of St. Matthew into theirnbsp;language. By the desire of the British colonial chaplain, the Churchnbsp;Missionary Society some years ago established a catechist here.

No. 10. Montserrat.�This island was visited by agents from the Wesleyan Missionary Society in 1820, and their labours and instructionsnbsp;soon produced a visible moral change among the inhabitants ; where

habits of dissipation and rioting formerly prevailed, decorum and good order became predominate. The population of Tobago were formerlynbsp;Roman Catholics, (the island having been for many years in the handsnbsp;of France), and the negroes were slow to abandon the errors of popery.nbsp;In 1825, the Wesleyans had nine Sunday schools established in thisnbsp;island. The clergy belonging to the Established Church, (unconnectednbsp;with any Missionary Society,) are two in number.*

No. 11. Dominica.�In 1788, Dr. Coke, of the Wesleyan Missionary Society, visited Dominica, with others of his brethren, and met with anbsp;favourable reception from different individuals, particularly from hisnbsp;Excellency Governor Orde ; but the island was unhealthy, especiallynbsp;the part fixed on by the Missionaries, which was a low marshy district,nbsp;and several of them fell a sacrifice to the climate. They also met withnbsp;great opposition from many of the planters, and when one of their bodynbsp;in 1796 petitioned against a command of the local government tonbsp;appear under arms upon the Sabbath, he was peremptorily ordered tonbsp;quit the island. A great number of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics, and one of the missionaries in 1824, thus writes of the negroesnbsp;who had been baptized into the Romish Church, � Their superstitionsnbsp;are such as many would hardly believe. On Good Friday, there was anbsp;great stir among them, in driving Judas and the DevU out of thenbsp;Church with a noise and tumult that were intolerable. The next day,nbsp;at the sound of a bell, all the Roman Catholics ran into the sea, tonbsp;wash away their sins.� When an African is baptized by a Romishnbsp;Priest, should he he afterwards robbed, instead of going to an Obeah man,nbsp;(as the pagan negroes used), to get him to perform certain magicalnbsp;tricks, and put the thief to excruciating pain until he either die, or restore the goods stolen, he brings a number of candles to bum in thenbsp;Church, and the priest assures him, that as long as those candles continue to burn, the depredator will be in torment. In 1822, the Earl ofnbsp;Huntingdon arrived in Dominica, as governor, and having assured thenbsp;missionaries of his countenance and protection, in October, 1822, henbsp;laid the the foundation of a new chapel, and the cause of religion continued to advance in the island. In 1826, there were 163 childrennbsp;attending the Sunday School of this mission. Mr. Dawes, agent ofnbsp;the Church Missionary Society, opened a school in Dominica, in 1823,nbsp;and organized an Auxiliary Missionary Society, which was patronizednbsp;by the most respectable of the inhabitants.! There was one Churchnbsp;of England clergyman on the island (according to the lately publishednbsp;� Church Map �) in 1842.

See Brown�s � History of Missions,� and Williains�.s � Missionary Gazetteer.�

No. 12. St Vincent�s.�In 1787, Mr. Clarke, of the Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced his labours on this island by opening a school for the Caribs, who had been suffered to remain in considerablenbsp;numbers in St. Vincent�s. In 1793, the colonial government passed annbsp;act prohibiting the missionaries from preaching to the negroes, undernbsp;the penalty of a fine for the first transgression, corporal punishment andnbsp;banishment for the second, and death for the third ! in consequence ofnbsp;which the missionaries were forced to leave the island. The whites ofnbsp;Dominica were however, generally, hostile to this iniquitous law, and itnbsp;was passed by a very thin house ; happily it was in force only a verynbsp;short time, for as all the acts of the colonial assemblies were transmittednbsp;to England for the royal sanction. King George III. was graciouslynbsp;pleased to disallow it, as contrary to the principles of toleration, ofnbsp;which he had always been the decided supporter. After this, no material impediment was thrown in the way of the mission, and for the nextnbsp;twenty years the converted negroes averaged about 2200 members. Innbsp;1823, they w'ere 2904 in number, with four Sunday Schools wellnbsp;attended.* Mr. Coleridge in his � Six Months in the West Indies innbsp;1825,� says, � the Church establishment in St. Vincent�s is very defective. There are some Roman Catholics, and a South American priestnbsp;in St. Vincent�s.� There are now four clergy of the Established Churchnbsp;in St. Vincent�s.

No. 13. Grenada.�The account given of missionary labours in this island, by the author of the Missionary Gazetteer in 1828, is as follows.nbsp;� The Wesleyans commenced a mission here in 1788, but the progressnbsp;of the gospel has been slow among the negroes, owing to their beingnbsp;almost wholly ignorant of the English language, and speaking a corruptnbsp;dialect of the French ;�in addition to which they are under the influencenbsp;of the superstitions of popery, and also of those derived from theirnbsp;African ancestors. Holy water is their god, which they purchase fromnbsp;the priest, and upon which they entirely depend for salvation.� Thenbsp;Wesleyans in 1828, had a school of 217 children, and 370 members innbsp;communion. The number of clergy now here, belonging to the Churchnbsp;of England, is four, according to the � Colonial Church Maps � latelynbsp;published. In 1795, the French effected a landing on the island whichnbsp;caused an insurrection, relating to which, Mr. Coleridge gives th�nbsp;following story, which shows the right feeling of the slaves, even whennbsp;excited by rebellion and wrongs. � In 1795, at the time of a slave insurrection, Mr. Macmahon, the rector, was, among other white inhabitants, brought out to be shot by the rebellious but triumphant slaves.nbsp;He determined to make a bold push for his life, and jumping on the

* See Williams�s � Gazetteer and Missionary Notices of the Methodist Missions,� vol. i. p. 73 ; and Coke�s History, vol. ii. p. 277.

neck of the slave general, clung to him so tightly that they could not force him off. The struggle produced a pause, and an enquiry who henbsp;was, and upon the rehellious slaves hearing he was the minister, theynbsp;raised a common cry for saving his life, saying, he had been a good andnbsp;a charitable man to all connected with his cure.�

No. 14. The Bahamas.�Mr. Turton of the Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced a mission here in 1800, and collected a small number of converts in New Providence Island, and after much oppositionnbsp;succeeded in erecting a chapel. He was succeeded by other missionaries, who formed stations in Harbour Island, Green Turtle Quay, andnbsp;other islands. In 1816, the colonial legislature passed an edict prohibiting the missionaries from preaching between sun-set and sun-rise, whichnbsp;measure was most deeply afflictive to the poor slaves. After thesenbsp;restrictions had been in force for four years, they were removed, andnbsp;one of the chapels in Nassau, Providence Island, being re-opened, thenbsp;congregations soon became very considerable. In 1825, the Wesleyansnbsp;had ten or twelve schools on these islands. The Baptist Missionaries,nbsp;since 1834, have had congregations in the Bahamas, but their returnsnbsp;do not relate anything of particular interest. In 1837, they had threenbsp;missionaries and 490 members. The number of clergy of the Established Church is eight, three of whom are paid by the Society for thenbsp;Propagation of the Gospel.

No. 15. Trinidad.�The Wesleyan Missionary Society commenced labouring in this large island in 1788 ; but they have never made muchnbsp;progress in educating or converting the Negroes, owing to the inhabitants chiefly consisting of Roman Catholics. In 1826, the missionaries write : � The Negro population, consisting of 20,000 slaves,nbsp;have not a minister of any denomination, to show unto them the way ofnbsp;salvation.� The London Missionary Society has had missionaries innbsp;this island, but they have been frequently deterred from proceeding innbsp;their labours by persecutions and difficulties.

The Church Missionary Society sent missionaries and catechists to Trinidad in 1836, and their work has been blessed in many instances,nbsp;both among the Negroes and the Spanish and French Roman Catholics,nbsp;and there are now six clergy in the island. They have been much triednbsp;by the loss of some of their faithful agents, who have died soon afternbsp;entering upon their labours.

No. 16. St. Lucia.�The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel was instrumental in building a church and supplying a minister in thisnbsp;island, in 1842. The inhabitants are most of them Roman Catholics.

No. 17. The Bermudas.�The Wesleyans went and laboured among the Negro slaves and people of colour in these islands, as early as thenbsp;year 1788, and thev have established some good schools here. These

islands are included in the diocese of Newfoundland. Four of the clergy of the Established Church are paid, in whole or in part, by the Societynbsp;for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, who also supportnbsp;eight schoolmasters in the islands.

It may be noticed here, that the � Ladies� Negro Education Society� was established in 1825, whose object was to establish schools, andnbsp;assist those already in existence, which may be approved of the planters.nbsp;These schools are, with few exceptions, under the care of the parochialnbsp;clergy, or of Moravian ministers ; and, in 1839, there were 57 in Jamaica, 29 in Antigua, and 34 in operation in St. Christopher�s, Nevis,nbsp;Montserrat, Dominica, St. Vincent�s, Trinidad, Tortola, the Bahamas,nbsp;Bermuda, and British Guiana. This Society introduced the infant-school system into our West Indian colonies ; and the results of thesenbsp;institutions have more than realized the hopes of their founders.

A missionary, in 1841, writes : � The effect of the circulation of the scriptures by the Bible Society, in Jamaica, has been most cheering.nbsp;The peasantry, in intelligence, are fully equal, if not superior, to the peasantry of England, and their attendance at church and liberality in thenbsp;cause of God are remarkable. The height of many an aged African�snbsp;hope and ambition now, is, that their children may be employed to bearnbsp;to the land of their birth that blessed gospel which soothed them innbsp;their former bondage, and sweetens their present freedom.� * Mr. F.nbsp;Buxton, in his work on � Slavery and its Remedy,� thus writes : � Inbsp;wish not with too sanguine an eye to anticipate the course of events,nbsp;but I cannot help believing, that, in the present condition of the Negronbsp;race in our West Indian colonies, lies one of the best hopes of Africa.nbsp;They are rising, under the influence of freedom, education, and religion,nbsp;to a rank which will fit them to be messengers of peace to the landnbsp;from which their forefathers were torn.� j-

The extent of missionary labours in the islands belonging to other European nations, remains now to be noticed.

No. 18. Hayti, or St. Domingo.�In 1816, two agents were sent by the Wesleyan Missionary Society from England to Port au Prince, thenbsp;capital of the republic of Hayti, and were, for a time, not only tolerated,nbsp;but kindly treated by the government, and the President Boyer wouldnbsp;willingly have had them remain on the island ; but they met with greatnbsp;and decided opposition from the inhabitants, many of whom were Romannbsp;Catholics. Upon their quitting the island, President Boyer presentednbsp;them with �500, for the funds of the Wesleyan Missionary Society.

The mass of the people were extremely ignorant and wicked, while the island was under the dominion of France and Spain ; but the presentnbsp;independent Negro government supports schools in all the principalnbsp;towns, and would tolerate both English and American clergy, but theynbsp;cannot control or suppress the opposition of the Roman Catholics.*

No. 19. Cuba.�The slave-trade is carried on in all its horrors and consequent wretchedness in this large island. The Spanish governmentnbsp;at home does not profess to countenance it, but the authorities in hernbsp;colonies connive at the traffic, and it has been computed that nearlynbsp;30,000 Negroes are annually imported from Africa to Cuba, and thosenbsp;almost entirely men and boys. There is no missionary of any denomination in Cuba. Respecting religion in this island, J. J. Gurney, Esq,,nbsp;thus writes : � We were here on the Sabbath-day ; a day of rest andnbsp;worship it cannot be said to be at Havannah. A certain proportion ofnbsp;the population do indeed attend the Roman Catholic churches, but thenbsp;generality seem to be given up to the utter neglect of religious duty.nbsp;No Protestant worship is tolerated, not even in the house of the Britishnbsp;consul.�

No. 20. Porto Rico.�We have not been able to collect any account of the state of religious instruction in this island. The inhabitants arenbsp;all Roman Catholics or heathens.

No. 21. Guadaloupe, Martinique, with the little islands of Mariegalante and Deseada.�These islands all belong to France. Most parts of itsnbsp;inhabitants are of the Roman Catholic persuasion.

No. 22. St. Thomas, St. Jan, St. Croix.�The first of these Danish islands is memorable in missionary history, as being the spot where thenbsp;Moravian missionaries were first led to bend their steps, of all the fairnbsp;West India isles. In 1732, some of the United Brethren, then onlynbsp;lately established at Hemhutt, in Silesia, upon some lands given themnbsp;by Count Zinzendorf, accompanied their pious friend and patron tonbsp;Copenhagen, where he was going to be present at the coronation ofnbsp;Christian the Fourth, king of Denmark. While there, they met with anbsp;black man from the Danish island of St. Thomas, in the West Indies,nbsp;who related to them a sad history of the state of the slaves in thosenbsp;islands, and of their utter destitution and ignorance regarding spiritualnbsp;things. This account so excited the compassion of two of the brethren,nbsp;that though many ridiculed the idea as absurd, they set out in a Dutchnbsp;ship bound for St. Thomas,�none of the Danish West India Company�snbsp;vessels being willing to take them on board. Though this seemed anbsp;distress and disappointment to the brethren, as they had to wait long

See Brown�s � History of Missions,� and Williams� � Missionary Gazetteer.'

for their conveyance, yet it was really a remarkable instance of the interposition of Divine Providence in their favour ; for the sailors in the vessel were Dutchmen, and one of the Danish princesses had presentednbsp;them with a Dutch bible, and upon their arrival in St. Thomas theynbsp;found unexpectedly that the negroes on the plantations understood nonbsp;language but a broken Dutch ; and thus they had been unknowinglynbsp;perfecting themselves throughout their voyage, in the very languagenbsp;they most needed upon their arrival (for their own native tongue wasnbsp;German). Upon their arrival at St. Thomas, some of the plantersnbsp;offered to feed and lodge them, but they refused to lay themselves undernbsp;obligations that might interfere with their grand design, viz. the preaching of the Gospel, and they endeavoured to support themselves bynbsp;labouring with their own hands. One soon left the island and returnednbsp;to Europe, but the remaining one, whose named was Leonard Dober,nbsp;was joined in 1735, by three other brethren from Hernhutt. Thenbsp;negroes were soon won by their kind and condescending manners,nbsp;and attended upon their instructions in great numbers ; and at first,nbsp;many of the white inhabitants favoured the mission. However, whennbsp;they saw that Christianity began to spread among the slaves, the plantersnbsp;began to check its progress, and negroes were prohibited by their masters from attending divine worship, established by the brethren. Theirnbsp;trials and difficulties now began to be very great, and some of theirnbsp;number offended the laws and were thrown into prison. Opposition onnbsp;all accounts was strong against them (as in matters of church government the Dutch and Moravian brethren do not agree) ; notwithstanding,nbsp;they proceeded in their labours among the negroes, and were visited bynbsp;Count Zinzendorf himself in 1739, who encouraged them greatly tonbsp;persevere. The opposition they met with on the island was directlynbsp;contrary to the license granted them by the Court of Denmark, andnbsp;having applied to that Government to settle some differences betweennbsp;themselves and the planters, they obtained in 1740 a favourable answer,nbsp;which put a stop for a time to the violent persecutions they had experienced, and the mission assumed a more promising aspect. In 1782,nbsp;they were attacked with great sickness, and many of their number died,nbsp;yet their place was immediately more than filled up either by brethrennbsp;from Europe or America. In 1812, the number of converts in St. Thomas was 2285, of whom 1188 were communicants,�about one-third ofnbsp;the whole negro population of this island. It is not unworthy of noticenbsp;that, though the opposition to the Moravian missionaries was at first so'nbsp;violent, yet at this time, there was not one manager or planter in thenbsp;island who prohibited his negroes from attending on their instructions,

St. Croij?.�This island was purchased from France in 1733 by the Danish West India Company. The lord chamberlain of Copenhagen,nbsp;Count Pless, who had bought six plantations, induced by the favourablenbsp;opinion he had formed of the United Brethren, applied to their congregation at Hernhutt for some of their number to go out as overseers ofnbsp;his estates, and as instructors to the slaves. A number of the brethrennbsp;joined the Danish settlers at Copenhagen, who were proceeding to St.nbsp;Croix ; but, from working too hard at clearing the ground, and fromnbsp;ignorance of the precautions necessary to be used in a tropical climate,nbsp;they were seized with sickness, which carried off many of them. Amongnbsp;other distresses, there were some of them too much actuated by worldlynbsp;motives, and too much engaged in labouring for their own support, andnbsp;so they made but little progress in converting the negroes ; and thoughnbsp;another party arrived who restored energy and a spirit of religion amongnbsp;the community, yet afterwards sickness and death obliged them for anbsp;time to abandon the mission. It was again renewed in 1740, but shortlynbsp;after, the missionaries were obliged to go to St. Thomas to strengthennbsp;the mission there. In 1751, a very devoted Moravian proceeded fromnbsp;St. Thomas, with a view of settling on the island, and was received withnbsp;joy by the Christian negroes. But now the pagan negroes gave themnbsp;much trouble and alarm, and constantly tried to set fire to their dwellings. At length, in the course of a few years, the mission assumed anbsp;more flourishing aspect ; and though the brethren were not withoutnbsp;some trials, yet they were cheered by witnessing the success of theirnbsp;labours, and many of the negroes gave evidence of the power of religionnbsp;on their hearts. In 1813, the brethren�s congregations at St. Croixnbsp;consisted of 8443 members, of whom 2608 were communicants.

St. Jan.�In 1754, a Moravian named Brucher, proceeded from St. Tliomas to commence a mission on this island. He was invited overnbsp;by a pious overseer, who had been impressed with the truth by thenbsp;brethren in St. Thomas. Its progress was at first slow, but in a fewnbsp;years, the number of converts, in proportion to the amount of population, was greater, perhaps, than any other mission at that time in thenbsp;world. In 1793, a most tremendous hurricane nearly destroyed allnbsp;their settlement, but no lives were lost. The total number of blacksnbsp;was then estimated at 2000 in St. Jan, and the brethren�s congregationnbsp;in 1812 consisted of 1461 converted negroes, of whom 677 were communicants.

* See Brown�s � History of Missions,� vol. i. extracted from � Periodical Accounts� of Moravian Brethren, and other works of the Moravians.

No. 23. St. Martin, St. Eustatius, Saba, and Cura�oa.�The two first of these small Dutch West India islands have schools and congregationsnbsp;formed by the Wesleyan Missionary Society.

Dr. Coke visited St. Eustatius in 1787, but he was not allowed by the Dutch Government to preach to the negroes. During his stay,nbsp;however, he employed himself in instructing a few blacks at the housenbsp;of a free negro, where he lodged. About the same time a poor American slave, who was a Christian, was imprisoned, and afterwardsnbsp;banished, for endeavouring to instruct his countrymen. Very strictnbsp;edicts were then issued by the Government against any who attemptednbsp;to preach or promote instruction among the slaves. Notwithstandingnbsp;this opposition, the Wesleyan Society in 1788, had 258 blacks undernbsp;their care and instruction, and they continued their labours, althoughnbsp;their hearers and themselves were often called on to suffer severenbsp;punishments and imprisonments. In 1810 the island was captured fornbsp;a time by the British, and the missionaries then obtained a license fromnbsp;the governor to preach, and their mission enjoyed a tranquillity whichnbsp;formed a striking contrast to the intolerance of former years. Theirnbsp;congregations became large, and many of the white people, as well asnbsp;slaves, heard the word with gladness. In 1822, the Christians amountednbsp;to 227 in number.

No. 24. St. Eartholomew.�This little island (which belongs to Sweden) is visited by the Wesleyan missionary residing on St. Eustatius, in the same manner as St. Martin and the little English isle ofnbsp;Anguilla. The tabular view of stations gives all the information respecting them that is published.

Guiana is bordered towards the sea-coast by a sandy flat in many parts covered with mangrove bushes, which appear an inaccessiblenbsp;barrier at low water, but are completely hidden at full tide. Behindnbsp;these mangroves, the low and level savannahs commence, extendingnbsp;irregularly inland, and every where intersected by rivers and creeks, withnbsp;a dense luxuriant and magnificent vegetation. The sugar and coffeenbsp;plantations are regularly ranged on either side the great rivers, or alongnbsp;the coast, in allotments of from 500 to 1000 acres each. The dwellinghouses of the colonists, elevated on piles of timber, are generally closenbsp;to the river�s brink, with a wharf, or landing-place opposite, for thenbsp;converiience of shipping produce : many of the sugar mills are driven bynbsp;wind, but the greater number have steam-engines. In 1834, therenbsp;were 216 sugar estates in the colony, each having a steam-engine, andnbsp;many two. The three great rivers in British Guiana, are the Essequibo,nbsp;Demarara, and Berbice. The mouth of the Essequibo, is from fifteen tonbsp;twenty miles wide, and adorned with many beautiful and bushy islands,nbsp;the largest of which is Leguan Island, which contains twenty-four sugarnbsp;estates. There are many falls in the Guiana rivers, which render theirnbsp;navigation difiicult and troublesome. The chief town of British Guiana,nbsp;now called George town, is situated at the mouth of the Demararanbsp;river, sixteen miles south east of the mouth of the Essequibo. Georgenbsp;town has much the appearance of a Dutch town, having been builtnbsp;when British Guiana belonged to that nation. The Demarara is navigable for nearly 100 miles, as far as the rapids ; but a bar of sand at itsnbsp;entrance prevents any ships drawing more than eighteen feet of water,nbsp;from ascending the river. Fifty miles up the Berbice river is the town ofnbsp;New Amsterdam. The coffee and sugar plantations extend for sixty

miles along the sea coast in the Berbice district, and the roads communicating with the Demarara district are excellent. Besides the above mentioned, there are in British Guiana numberless small rivers andnbsp;creeks, intersecting wild and almost impenetrable forests. The rivernbsp;Corantyne form the boundary between British and Dutch Guiana.

The climate of Guiana is extremely hot, like that of most countries within the torrid zone ; before the country was cleared, the heat, acting upon a moist soil and luxuriant vegetation, was very detrimentalnbsp;to the health of Europeans ; but since the lands have been cleared andnbsp;cultivated, the climate has been found to be rather healthy than otherwise. A vast quantity of rain falls in Guiana during the year, particularly in the high and woody interior. In the hot season, the thermometer ranges from eighty-four to ninety degrees on the coast, andnbsp;twenty miles inland, seldom exceeds eighty, and falls in the night, as lownbsp;as sixty degrees. The banks of the rivers are only unhealthy near thenbsp;sea-coast, and this quite ceases to be the case, beyond the influence ofnbsp;the tides. On the table land 300 miles inland, the climate is describednbsp;as being delicious, and the late surveyor of Demarara gave it as hisnbsp;opinion, that if the hand of cultivation reaches to the hills of the interior, the climate of British Guiana would be the most healthy andnbsp;agreeable of any within the tropics, with fish, flesh, fowl, and vegetablesnbsp;in abundance, pure water, no fevers, no hurricanes, no mosquitoes. Thenbsp;soil is perhaps, the most fruitful in the world ; it is never manured, andnbsp;an acre has been known to produce 800 pounds of sugar, and 20,000nbsp;pounds of the farinaceous food produced from the plaintain, in one year.

The chief productions of the British Colony of Guiana, are sugar, rum, molasses, coffee, and cotton. The exportation of these articles, andnbsp;a few others, in small quantities, as wine, fruit, and timber, amounted innbsp;value during the year 1832, to 361,386,104.

The silk cotton-tree grows to the height of 100 feet, and is twelve or fourteen feet in diameter, and is much prized by the Indians for constructing their largest canoes. A great variety of trees are found innbsp;Guiana, useful either for their timber or their gum. Several kinds ofnbsp;palm, and the Cassava, a plant four feet high, whose root the Indiansnbsp;make into bread, and from which our tapioca is manufactured.

Montgomery Martin estimated the population of British Guiana in 1832 at 3529 whites, 7521 free blacks and Indians, and 39,736 slaves.nbsp;He adds, it is difficult to ascertain the number of Indians, who livenbsp;south of the cultivated part of our colony, 5000 of these considernbsp;themselves under the protection of the British Government, receivenbsp;triennial presents, and annual supplies. When this part of the Southnbsp;American continent was first visited by Columbus, it was found denselynbsp;peopled ; but alas, now remain, few, comparatively speaking. Therenbsp;are seven or eight different tribes of Indians, living in and aroundnbsp;British Guiana, but the Arrawak tribe has claimed the greatest consideration from the British Church and Government, as hving withinnbsp;the immediate vicinity of the plantations, and whose services havenbsp;been most frequently required by the English settler. As early as thenbsp;year 1580, the Dutch began to form small settlements on this coast,nbsp;on the banks of the Amazon, Orinoco, and Pomeroon rivers. Thesenbsp;proceedings were viewed with a jealous eye by the Spaniards, who,nbsp;aided by the Indians, drove the Dutch from their station. In 1613,nbsp;they reported their colony on the river Essequibo to he in a flourishingnbsp;condition, and the Dutch government undertook to supply the colonistsnbsp;with negro slaves from Africa. From this time to 1803, these coloniesnbsp;were at various times contended for by the French, and in the yearsnbsp;1781 and 1796, by the British, till at length, in 1814, the colonies ofnbsp;Demarara, Essequibo, and Berbice, were finally ceded to Great Britain,nbsp;with the condition, that the Dutch proprietors had hberty under certainnbsp;regulations, to trade with Holland,

The Indians of Guiana are a people of small stature, stout, and plump in proportion, but not muscular. Their necks are short, andnbsp;their ankles, feet, and hands remarkably small. They have the straight,nbsp;strong, black hair of the red Indian, small features, and well proportioned hmbs. The forehead is uniformly lower than that of the European ; but superior to that of the Negro, whose untutored powers ofnbsp;mind are as much inferior to those of the Indian, as are those of the

latter to the mental capacity of the European. Some of the tribes are almost as fair as the Spaniards, while those who live near the sea arenbsp;of a very dark brown complexion.

The Guiana Indians having no inducements to carry on commerce, cultivate during three or four months of the year, as much provision, (chiefly Cassava root), as will serve their family during thenbsp;remainder of the year, and the rest of his time is spent in hunting,nbsp;fishing, visiting neighbouring tribes, drinking and dancing. They arenbsp;a revengeful people ; but in their mutual quarrels, wUl always abidenbsp;by the award of a European. The duties of hospitahty are paramount among all barbarian nations, and in this quality, the Southnbsp;American Indians excel. Their principal characteristics, are agility,nbsp;dexterity, and the intuitive tact of tracking or discovering footstepsnbsp;in the bush. Tlieir sense of smell is so acute, that they will tracknbsp;any animal, (man not excepted) by merely smelhng the stones or earthnbsp;on which he has recently trod. They manufacture bows, arrows, hammocks, canoes, fishing apparatus, and baskets with considerable ingenuity ; but there does not appear to have been any improvement ornbsp;new idea struck out by them, in any of these arts, from time immemorial ; this is the case with all barbarous nations, till they begin to worknbsp;metals, which by their softness, and capability of being melted in thenbsp;fire, open a new train of ideas, and enlarge the field for improvement ;nbsp;whereas, in working of wood, bone or stone, all possible excellence isnbsp;soon acquired, and improvement quickly ceases. The Indian, in hisnbsp;powers of running, far outstrips the European, which accounts for thenbsp;astonishingly rapid movements of the Indian regiments in the army ofnbsp;Bolivar. Moreover, they can live where Europeans must starve ; for,nbsp;with ten pounds of cassava bread, an Indian can keep the field for threenbsp;weeks or a month.

Some of the tribes more inland, (as the Accaways,) are of a deeper red complexion, and a more warlike and quarrelsome spirit ; they arenbsp;dreaded by their neighbours, and were it not that they are constantlynbsp;at war among themselves, they could easily subdue aU the other tribes,nbsp;as they are more numerous than any. The Caribs differ from the othernbsp;tribes, in never going to war for the purposes of trade, or procuringnbsp;slaves ; their disputes are either on account of personal afironts, or infringement of territory, and their wars are always wars of extermination ; they are, in consequence, rapidly decreasing, but those that remain are strongly attached to the colony. It is supposed they formerlynbsp;occupied the Carribean, (or West India Islands,) and they are distinguished by that independent boldness which characterizes all islanders.nbsp;The houses of the Indians of Guiana, are constructed of two rows of

elastic rods stuck firmly into the ground, and bent over at top, into the shape of a pointed arch ; the whole being covered with palm leaves laidnbsp;horizontally from bottom to top. They are very close and warm, andnbsp;there is no aperture for the smoke to escape, except through the doorway. The Caribs are very indiscriminate in their use of animal food ;nbsp;tigers, cats, rats, frogs, toads, lizards, and insects, are equally welcomenbsp;with fish and game. They preserve fish, flesh, and fowl, by placing itnbsp;upon a stage erected for the purpose under which they have previouslynbsp;lighted a clear wood fire : twelve hours smoking will preserve it fornbsp;several weeks ; whereas, there are many kinds of meat that would notnbsp;imbibe salt with sufficient rapidity in this climate to prevent putrefaction. Of the languages of the different tribes of Indians, east of thenbsp;Andes, very little is known ; except that they differ very materially fromnbsp;those of Peru and Mexico. They have no alphabet, or hieroglyphicalnbsp;characters to express their idea, as their brethren on the west of thenbsp;Andes have. Mr. Hillhouse says, that the Arrawak dialect has somenbsp;claim to harmony and expression. In 1837, Mr. Latrobe was appointednbsp;by government to inspect the schools erected by parliamentary grants innbsp;British Guiana and the West Indies, and he thus speaks of the Caribnbsp;Indian races in his report to the colonial secretary, � The experiencenbsp;made by the clergy attached to the Church Missionary Society at thenbsp;present day, accords with that of the Moravian Missionaries ; the docility of many of the tribes, and the aptitude of the Indian to receivenbsp;instruction, are placed beyond a doubt. The great difficulty, is theirnbsp;strong natural dislike to fixed abodes and sedentary habits.� Montgomery Martin says, � I do not agree with the writer of � Six months innbsp;the West Indies,� N. Coleridge, Esq., in thinking the South Americannbsp;Indian an inferior being to the African.�

Of the creed of the Indians of South America, we know very little. Mr. Hillhouse says they believe in the existence of a superior Divinity,nbsp;the universal Creator ; and most tribes also acknowledge a subservientnbsp;power, whose province it is to protect their nation. The name of thenbsp;principal deity of the Caribs and the Accawai tribe, signifies � One thatnbsp;works in the dark.� They have detailed traditions respecting the creation of the world, nearly as absurd and impure as those of the Hindoos.nbsp;Mr. Hillhouse thinks the Indians have undoubtedly a religious principlenbsp;amongst them ; hut as they have no priesthood, nor form of worship, itnbsp;degenerates, as with all ignorant minds, into superstition and a belief in

magic. They are in perpetual fear of evil spirits, whom they consider as night murderers, continually lying in wait to entrap and destroynbsp;them. The Indians of the Spanish Roman Catholic missions believednbsp;that the object of their priests in confession, was to obtain a knowledgenbsp;of their pecuniary means, in order to lay them under more effectual contributions. As to absolution, they thought it too absurd to be worthynbsp;even of dispute ; but they readily, from their belief in magic, subscribednbsp;to the virtues of the rosary, beads, amulets, and relics. Matins, vespers, and houris were considered by the Indian as incantations, and efficacious in expelling the evil spirit ; and the Spamsh Indians of thenbsp;Orinoco, who aU wear the cross and denominate themselves � goodnbsp;Catholics,� chaunting their services morning and evening, have no othernbsp;idea of a religious principle, than that the performance of these ceremonies gives them a charmed existence. It is true these Indians arenbsp;more sober and industrious than those in our own colonies ; but thisnbsp;arises from their having been long congregated in towns and villages,nbsp;and subjected to the municipal rule of the local authorities.*

In 1739, the Moravians sent several missionaries to Berbice (in British Guiana), and others to Surinam, in Dutch Guiana. It was their original plan to have made known the Gospel among the negroes in thesenbsp;colonies ; but the planters and other inhabitants were so much prejudiced against them, in consequence of unfounded reports which hadnbsp;been circulated in Holland, that they would not suffer them to carrynbsp;their views into execution. The brethren therefore turned their attention to the Carribee Indians, who lived on the borders of the colonies,nbsp;and even succeeded in translating for the use of the converts (by thenbsp;help of a mulatto interpreter), a small work into the Arrawak language,nbsp;entitled, � The Life of Christ.� The brethren met with the greatestnbsp;difficulties and hardships in their attempts to convert the Indians ; andnbsp;one great opposition they had to encounter was from the free negroes,nbsp;who were in fact run-away slaves from the colonies, who were constantlynbsp;committing depredations upon the planters and settlers, and were thenbsp;determined enemies of the Indians, who were paid so much a-head bynbsp;the colonial government for every free negro they captured. Theirnbsp;other hardships arose from fevers, prevalent in the country, wild beastsnbsp;and snakes, fires and storms, so that one station after another was given

up by these persevering and devoted men, till Paramaribo in Dutch Guiana was the only one that remained. The converted slaves here innbsp;1821 amounted in numbers to 1154. After this, the brethren extendednbsp;their exertions to other parts of Dutch Guiana, and within a few yearsnbsp;the number of their converts were more than doubled. From the commencement of these missions in 1739 to 1800, there had been 159 ofnbsp;the Moravian brethren and sisters employed at the different stations, ofnbsp;whom 75 had died in the country,�many of them soon after theirnbsp;arrival. In 1842 their missions were prospering in Surinam, notwithstanding some persecutions, and the dislike the white inhabitants had tonbsp;the negroes being taught to read. At Salem, one of their stations, thenbsp;brethren have six copies of the New Testament, and they relate, � thatnbsp;the negroes would often journey miles in the fog and darkness of the nightnbsp;in order to benefit by them.� They further add, � It is a matter of thankfulness to us, amidst the dearth of Christian instruction so lamentablynbsp;prevailing in this colony, that we have permission to visit as many as 120nbsp;plantations, to make known the glad tidings of a Saviour�s love to thenbsp;poor neglected negroes. Here there is a population of more than 60,000nbsp;�to whom we are nearly the only missionaries�and � what are wenbsp;among so many ?� * The number of estates allowed to be visited bynbsp;the Moravian Brethren in 1832, was twenty; in 1837, they were admitted upon forty-six estates, so that the decrease of prejudice on thenbsp;p^t of the planters within the last ten years is very apparent.

The Church Missionary Society sent an increased number of agents to British Guiana, upon the abolition of slavery m this colony. In 1837nbsp;it maintained two missionaries and three catechists in Demerara, and atnbsp;four schools in the colony there were 450 scholars. In 1838 it hadnbsp;three missions and four catechists. Its labours have been among thenbsp;Caiib Indian races who belong to the colony, as well as to the negroesnbsp;on the estates. They are a very ignorant and neglected description ofnbsp;people, and the missionaries have had very great difficulties to contendnbsp;with in this scene of their labours. Sickness very often prevails to annbsp;alarming extent among the poor Indians, but the missionaries have beennbsp;unremitting in their exertions for their good.

In 1837, the London Missionary Society had ten* missionaries and six schoolmasters in British Guiana, and several large day and sabbathnbsp;schools. The agents of the London Missionary Society have chieflynbsp;laboured among the negroes of the colony. They have had severalnbsp;black catechists and schoolmasters connected with their missions. Thenbsp;missionaries in 1837, write, that�� God had owned and blessed hisnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;-�

holy word in this colony, and that the increased industry, morality, and spirituality of the negroes had followed these gracious manifestations ofnbsp;Divine influence.�

From the Rev. J. Scott of Demerara, we hear, in 1842, that the members of his church (negroes) not exceeding in number 300, raisednbsp;in one year the sum of �785 sterling, for the support of the mission;nbsp;and the Rev. J. Roome, of Berbice, who has also a congregation ofnbsp;field-labourers, thus writes ; � In June last I had an attack of fever,nbsp;from which, by the mercy of God, I recovered ; my people felt trulynbsp;grateful that my life was spared, and my health restored. To shew theirnbsp;gratitude, they resolved to give a thank-offering to God ; the sumnbsp;amounted to �220, and this from a people who had raised during thenbsp;year �1500 towards the erection of a new chapel and other missionarynbsp;objects.� *

The United Brethren�s mission in Surinam, or Dutch Guiana, has for several years entirely supported itself, f Mr. Bemau, missionary tonbsp;Guiana, thus writes to the Church Missionary Society ; �Be assurednbsp;that the longer I am engaged in the arduous duties of a missionary�snbsp;life, the more I rejoice that in the Providence of God I have been led tonbsp;these benighted Indians, If under my toils, the roads be levelled andnbsp;obstacles removed, I do herein rejoice, being persuaded that all willnbsp;finally be conducive to their temporal and everlasting welfare. It is anbsp;matter of rejoicing to my heart to be able to state that since I lastnbsp;wrote to you, several families have joined us. I know that to the Indiannbsp;it is no small sacrifice to quit the abode of his ancestors ; and to him,nbsp;not a less arduous task to clear away the forest, and to rear his housenbsp;in so different a style from what he was accustomed to before ; but sonbsp;fully am I convinced, that unless they settle in the place, and are taughtnbsp;to cultivate the ground, and thus weaned from their wandering habits, they as well as their children will never be brought to profit bynbsp;our instructions. And praised be the Lord for making them see andnbsp;feel that a life after this manner, is that which will secure to them greatnbsp;blessings. There are now sixteen neatly built cottages, inhabited, together with children, by upwards of ninety souls, and the prospect of beingnbsp;well supplied with provisions.� J

* See �Missionary Register� for 1842, p. 248. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; See �Annual Report,� 1843.

N.B.�Curaffoa was a station undertaken by the Netherlands Missionary Society in 1822, but no notice of it has reached us since 1829.

* In seven Sabbath schools there are 1572 scholars. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;t Sabbath scholars, 1177.

$ Ibid. 441. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� Ibid. 380. II Ibid. 1237.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;1 Ibid. 1466.

** All within this bracket are Sabbath-school teachers. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Returns imperfect.

We propose to treat of this part of the world under three separate heads, viz. Istly. British America, including Canada, New Brunswick,nbsp;Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland, inhabited chiefly by British people ;�nbsp;2dly. the Indian territory belonging to Great Britain, or, more properly,nbsp;the Hudson�s Bay Company�s territories ;�and, 3dly. the Indian territory belonging to the United States ; both these last being inhabited bynbsp;Indians and white people, though very scantily by either.

1st. Of British America.�Canada is so called, from the Iroquois or Indian word Kanata, signifying a collection of huts,�which the earlynbsp;European discoverers mistook for the name of the country.* It hasnbsp;been divided by the British into two provinces. Upper and Lowernbsp;Canada, The situation of Lower Canada is in fact the most northerlynbsp;of the two, but it was so called from being nearest the mouth of thenbsp;river St. Lawrence ; and as the river is ascended, so the province farthest from its entrance was named Upper Canada. The Lower provincenbsp;consists of the most picturesque scenery, of ranges of mountains,nbsp;prairies, forests, rivers, lakes, and cataracts. The country on eithernbsp;side of the river St. Lawrence is mountainous, and on the southern sidenbsp;the Alleghany Mountains rise abruptly to the height of from three tonbsp;four thousand feet. Very little is known of the country to the north ofnbsp;Canada, bordered by the Attawa, or Grand River ; but, as far as it hasnbsp;been explored, it is not so mountainous as the rest of Canada. Thenbsp;Gasp� district is also unexplored ; it is mountainous, and in part fertile.nbsp;The grand features of North America are its immense lakes, and its

numerous and rapid rivers. The River St. Lawrence rises out of the magnificent basin of Lake Superior, which is more than �500 miles innbsp;circumference, and flows through a course of 3000 miles till it reachesnbsp;the Atlantic Ocean, varying from one to ninety miles broad. It isnbsp;navigable for ships of a large class for nearly 2000 miles from its mouth,nbsp;including Lakes Ontario, Erie, and Huron. This river is called the St.nbsp;Lawrence from the Atlantic Ocean to the city of Montreal : it is callednbsp;the Iroquois or Cataraqui, from Montreal to Kingston in Upper Canada :nbsp;between Lakes Ontario and Erie it is called the Niagara, where are thenbsp;famous falls of that name : between Lakes Erie and St. Clair, it isnbsp;called the Detroit : and between Lake St. Clair and Huron, the St.nbsp;Clair. Lower Canada, on either side this noble river presents scenerynbsp;the most singularly beautiful ; the imposing features of its vast landscapes consisting of lofty mountains, wide vailles, luxuriant forests,nbsp;richly-cultivated corn-fields, pretty villages and settlements, (somenbsp;stretching up the mountains,) fertile islands with neat cottages, richnbsp;pastures and well-tended flocks, rocky islets, and tributary rivers rollingnbsp;over precipices or through mighty chasms of the mountains, to reachnbsp;the St. Lawrence.

Quebec, the capital of Lower Canada is a beautiful city, crowned by an impregnable fortress (the Gibraltar of the New World). It containsnbsp;a great number of public buildings, a Roman Catholic convent, a Jesuits� monastery (now a barrack), two cathedrals�the Protestant andnbsp;Roman Catholic, the Lower Town Church, the Scotch Church, Wesleyan Chapel, Trinity Chapel, with Bank, Exchange, Court-House, amp;c.nbsp;Quebec contained, in 1831, nearly 26,000 inhabitants ; but its populationnbsp;must have considerably increased since that time. The houses are principally built of wood, and roofed with small pieces of the same material,nbsp;called shingles. Some of the houses and public buildings are alsonbsp;covered over on the top with thin plates of iron or tin. Montreal, thenbsp;other city of Lower Canada, far surpasses Quebec in the extent andnbsp;importance of her trade, the beauty of her buildings, and all the external signs of wealth. The whole island on which Montreal is built, isnbsp;comprised in one seignory, and belongs to wealthy Roman Catholicnbsp;priests. In 1834, it contained 35,000 inhabitants. A continuous rangenbsp;of hills stretch from Lake Superior to the coast of Labrador, dividingnbsp;the rivers which flow into the Gulf of Mexico from those which flownbsp;northwards into Hudson�s Bay.

Upper Canada is a fertile and well-wooded country, enlivened by towns and flourishing settlements. Toronto, the capital of the province,nbsp;contains upwards of 11,000 inhabitants, consisting of English, Irish,nbsp;and Scotch, and some native Canadians. IJttle more than forty years

ago, the spot that Toronto stands upon, and the whole country to the north and west of it, was a perfect wilderness. The town of Kingston,nbsp;on Lake Ontario, next to Quebec and Halifax, is the strongest fortifiednbsp;post in North America ; and, next to Quebec and Montreal, the first innbsp;commercial importance. An extensive water communication is effectednbsp;throughout Upper Canada, by means of canals ; and railroads are nownbsp;being constructed. The soils of the country are various, all extremelynbsp;productive. The substratum is a bed of horizontal limestone, which, innbsp;some places rises to the surface, and is used for building, or manufactured into excellent lime, which enriches the soil when sprinkled over it.

The climate of so extensive a country as the two Canadas, of course varies according to the distance each part is from the equator,�thenbsp;nearness to, or distance from, uncultivated ranges of mountains, andnbsp;other causes ; but as a whole, the clear blue sky, the absence of fogs,nbsp;and the consequent elasticity of life, show the general salubrity ofnbsp;British North America. Lower Canada is colder than Upper, but itnbsp;has more days of clear, fine weather in the course of the year. Atnbsp;Quebec, the snow covers the ground, about three feet thick, on annbsp;average, from November to May, The frost during this period isnbsp;intense, with north-west winds and a clear atmosphere ; but on a changenbsp;of wind to the south or east, the weather becomes damp, accompaniednbsp;with thick fog and snow-falls. The thermometer usually ranges fromnbsp;thirty-two to twenty-five degrees below freezing-point (Fahrenheit),nbsp;during December, January, February, and March. Large movingnbsp;blocks of ice partly choke up the river St. Lawrence during winter, andnbsp;are not all gone till about the second week in May. As soon as winternbsp;sets in, most of the feathered tribes migrate to warmer latitudes, andnbsp;few quadrupeds are to be seen, some, like the bear, remaining hid in anbsp;torpid state, and others, like the hare, change their colour to purenbsp;white, and thus with difficulty can be discerned amid the snow. Fromnbsp;Quebec to Montreal, the St. Lawrence ceases to be navigable, andnbsp;serves as a road for the sledges and carioles. The farmer is obligednbsp;to house his sheep, cattle, and poultry, and kills those he designs fornbsp;winter use, before they lose any of the fat acquired in summer andnbsp;autumn. No salt is required to preserve the flesh ; it is exposed to thenbsp;frost for a short time, and soon becomes as hard as ice, and in this statenbsp;is preserved in casks or boxes with snow, to keep away the external air ;nbsp;when wanted it is thawed for use in cold water. Fish may be preservednbsp;in the same manner. During the summer, genial breezes blow from thenbsp;west and south, warm weather is ushered in by gentle rains, and a rapidnbsp;rise in the thermometer takes place. After a long and gloomy winter,nbsp;the earth is again renovated, and new life restored to trees, plants, and

fertile meadows. The heat in June, July, and August is often oppressive, the thermometer ranging from eighty to ninety-five degrees in the shade.*

It does not enter into the design of this work, nor would its limits allow of our giving a detailed geographical account of New Brunswick,nbsp;Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and Newfoundland, as they are principallynbsp;inhabited by emigrants and settlers from Britain ; and we have hithertonbsp;confined our observations to countries peopled by heathens and Mahometans. We shall therefore pass on to give a general view of thenbsp;plants and animals of British North America. Through the whole ofnbsp;this region, timber, grass, and com (chiefly wheat in the more southern parts), form the chief vegetable productions of the country. Ofnbsp;the timber, there is a great variety, especially of fir, pine, and larch.nbsp;The oaks of several kinds are very numerous, and extend from Canadanbsp;to the extreme southern parts of the United States : none of them,nbsp;however, can compare, as to the quality of their wood, with the Britishnbsp;oak. There are eight species of ash, and ten of maple, among whichnbsp;the sugar-maple is well known and valued, for the abundance of sugarnbsp;that is made from its sap. There are numerous species of nuts and walnuts. The locust-tree, nearly allied to the acacia, is a beautiful andnbsp;valuable American tree. The tulip is one of the noblest beauties of thenbsp;forests, and rhododendrons, azalias, and kalmias, abound in the swampynbsp;grounds. It is also to the north-west side of America that our gardensnbsp;are indebted for their penstemons, �notheras, gillias, and collomias,nbsp;likewise the curious sarracenias or pitcher-plants, and the still morenbsp;wonderful American fiy-trap (dion�a muscipula), which has at the endnbsp;of its long green leaves a fleshy apparatus, which closes together whenever a fly alights on it, in the manner of our rat-traps. Sir J. E.nbsp;Smith thinks that the decaying carcases of the flies thus caught are ofnbsp;service to the plant, by conveying a peculiar air to it. Beyond thenbsp;southern shores of Lake Winnipeg the oak and Canada-pine disappear,nbsp;and com wiU not grow. The extensive district to the west and southnbsp;of Hudson�s Bay is more or less rocky, and abounds in lakes, swamps,nbsp;and rivers, and is thickly wooded. The Rocky Mountains, the highestnbsp;of which are 11,000 feet, yield all kinds of alpine plants. Northwardnbsp;of the Great Slave I ,ake the vegetation is peculiarly arctic, consistingnbsp;of a few kinds of stunted trees, some saxifrages and various lichens andnbsp;mosses, some of which form an extensive article of food to the Canadiannbsp;hunters, particularly that species of lichen called tripe-de-roche.

the inhabited and cultivated parts of Canada, abounds in quadrupeds of various kinds and sizes, so valuable to Great Britain for their beautifulnbsp;furs, and useful skins. The principal of these are the bear, the elk, thenbsp;antelope, the buffalo, the deer, the lynx, and the wolf, among the largernbsp;animals ; and among the smaller, the fox, beaver, martin, otter, racoon,nbsp;musk rat, squirrel, cat, hare, rabbit, and porcupine. Many of the birdsnbsp;in Canada, are birds of passage, and those that are not are similar to ournbsp;European feathered tribes, such as the eagle, hawk, owl, crow, woodpecker, swan, goose, duck, amp;c., plovers, pigeons, partridges, snipes, andnbsp;grouse also abound; but the plumage is in many cases far more beautifulnbsp;than that of the same species in Great Britain. The wild pigeon has anbsp;beautiful blue plumage, tinged with shades of green, red, and gold : whennbsp;these birds migrate to the more northerly regions, as they do in the Canadian summer, they darken the sky for miles with their numbers. Thenbsp;walrus, polar bear, and seal frequent the northern territories near thenbsp;arctic sea. The musk ox is truly an arctic animal, the districts which itnbsp;inhabits, being the extreme northern regions of America and Asia, inhabited by the Esquimaux ; it derives its name from its flesh ha^dng anbsp;strong smell of musk. Grass in the summer, and lichens in the winter,nbsp;supply its only food. It is about as large as the small highland cattle.nbsp;On the Rocky Mountains is found a peculiar breed of wild goats, withnbsp;long soft silky hair, and of wild sheep with short stiff hair like the reindeer.nbsp;In Canada, insects abound during the summer months, of every varietynbsp;of colour, and mosquitos and sandflies are troublesome in the new andnbsp;uncleared lands. Snakes are met with, but very few, if any, are venomous.

Having now briefly considered the geography, chmate, and Natural History of the two first divisions of our subject, viz. the British States,nbsp;and the Hudson�s Bay Company�s territories, it now only remains for usnbsp;to notice the Western or Indian territory, belonging to the Unitednbsp;States. This is sometimes called the Missouri territory, from the greatnbsp;river of that name running through it, and consists chiefly of a succession of great vallies formed by mighty rivers, which, rising in the Rockynbsp;Mountains, flow eastward till they join the great Mississippi, which fallsnbsp;into the gulf of Mexico. The different states are very often namednbsp;after these different rivers, as Arkansas, Illinois, Ohio, and La Platte.nbsp;The soil of this immense tract is not so uniformly fine as the country tonbsp;the east of the Mississippi. The general character of this region, isnbsp;that of large Prairies, or plains (the word � Prairie � is French, andnbsp;means a field, or grassy meadow.) In many parts there is not timbernbsp;sufficient to supply a settlement with building materials and fuel, butnbsp;this defect is supplied by floating down on the rivers, timber from thenbsp;Rocky Mountains. There are in this large tract of country two ex-

tensive deserts, one lies to the eastward of the Mexican river Del Norte, and extends from that to the Missouri ; the Arkansas, and thenbsp;(Lower) Red River flows through it, it is very saline, and aboundsnbsp;in marine substances, two thirds of its springs are as salt as the sea,nbsp;and a great quantity of rock salt might be dug from the sides of itsnbsp;low craggy hiUs. The other desert is the only one of the kind innbsp;America, and consists of moving sands, which extends from the Rivernbsp;Platte to the Missouri, and resembles in character the � Sahara,� innbsp;Africa. Forests abound in the eastern part of this territory, nearest tonbsp;the Alleghany mountains. From the bottom of lake Michigan to thenbsp;river Ohio is an immense prairie, 300 miles in length, and from tw�enty-five to thirty in breadth, and the region west of the Mississippi consistsnbsp;almost entirely of one extensive prairie, reaching even to Mexico.nbsp;The soil on the banks of the beautiful clear river Ohio is to a great extent very productive, it yields in perfection, maize, wheat, and rye, andnbsp;in some parts tobacco and cotton. Cattle are sent from hence to thenbsp;eastern states, and hogs are reared in great numbers for exportation.nbsp;Here, as in Kentucky, are considerable cotton and iron manufactories.nbsp;Coal abounds in the parts of this district nearest to the States, Illinoisnbsp;is described by Mr. Stuart, a recent traveller, as one of the finest countries in the world, great part of it being composed of fine fertile prairies,nbsp;beautifully diversified with wood, and it possesses lead mines of extraordinary richness. Its population has doubled in the last ten or fifteennbsp;years. In the state of Mississippi, maize, indigo, and tobacco arenbsp;cultivated, and cotton of late years to a great extent, and vast herds ofnbsp;cattle are fed on the prairies. Natchez, the celebrated residence of annbsp;Indian chief, called the � Great Sun,� is still the principal place ; but hasnbsp;now only 3 or 4000 inhabitants. The state of Indiana contains severalnbsp;rising towns and villages.

The discovery of Canada was etfected at a very early period by British skill and enterprize. In 1497, and in 1517, John and Sebastian Cabot explored all the eastern coasts, the mouth of the river St. Lawrence, and even the coast of Labrador ; and afterwards, in 1610, Hudsonnbsp;first sailed into the bay or sea that now bears his name. Some yearsnbsp;previous to this, the French navigator. Curlier, sailed up the St. Lawrence to Montreal, upon which voyage the French nation founded theirnbsp;claim to Canada ; but their first colony was not formed till the year 1608.nbsp;They pushed their settlements with great activity far into the interior.

till they began to close in those formed by Great Britain, in New England, (which now forms part of the United States). After the warnbsp;between England and France 1756�63, Canada was transferred tonbsp;Britain, the last combat being the taking of Quebec, where Wolfe conquered and fell. By the peace which ensued, Canada and all the othernbsp;parts, which now belong to Britain, were insured to her in full dominion ; and after the great Revolution which separated the Unitednbsp;States from the mother country, these countries still remained in hernbsp;possession. By a singular contrast, the part of America which wasnbsp;colonized from England, and inhabited by Englishmen, rejected her,nbsp;while the part colonized by France, and inhabited by Frenchmen, remained firmly attached to her.* It is generally admitted that no people,nbsp;completely subdued, were ever more liberally treated than the Frenchnbsp;colonists in Canada. Their property was fully preserved to them, andnbsp;they were admitted to every office on the same footing as British subjects. The civil and criminal law of England, including trial by jury,nbsp;was granted them ; but in regard to the law of property and civil jurisdiction, they preferred retaining their own mode of administration.nbsp;The Roman Catholic religion enjoyed full toleration, and the large property with which it had been invested, was preserved to the Frenchnbsp;Canadians entire. Canada was granted a Representative Constitutionnbsp;by Mr. Pitt in 1791, by whom the country was divided into the Uppernbsp;and Lower Provinces, with a separate governor and separate parliamentnbsp;for each province. The turbulent proceedings which occurred in 1832,nbsp;obliged the Government at home to suspend this constitution, and anbsp;new one has been given to Canada, and the two provinces have beennbsp;united into one.

The government of Nova Scotia does not differ materially from that of Canada. At the head of affairs is a lieutenant-governor, subordinatenbsp;in some respects to the governor-general of Quebec ; but the latternbsp;does not interfere in the civil jurisdiction. The chief energies of thenbsp;people in New Brunswick are devoted to the timber-trade. In Novanbsp;Scotia are valuable mines of coal and iron, and the former is found alsonbsp;in Cape Breton island. The population of Upper Canada is supposed tonbsp;be about 276,000 ; of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Isle, 200,000; ofnbsp;Newfoundland, 75,000.t

The natural resources of British America are more ample than would he inferred from its dreary aspect and the vast snows under which it isnbsp;buried for more than half the year. Canada has a very fertile soil,nbsp;especially the Upper province ; and though its summer is only of five

* See Murray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography,� p. LSI I. � See Murray's � British America,� p. 209,

months duration, the heat of that period is so intense as to ripen the more valuable kinds of grain in perfection. The vast uncleared tractsnbsp;are covered with excellent timber. Nova Scotia and New Brunswicknbsp;are less fertile, yet they contain much good land and are well timbered,nbsp;and though these parts are not warm enough to ripen wheat, yet oatsnbsp;and rye will come to perfection. Newfoundland is not so barren as hasnbsp;often been supposed, and has on its shores the most valuable cod fisherynbsp;in the world. The collection of furs was originally the chief object ofnbsp;the British in opening an intercourse with North America. It was longnbsp;carried on with peculiar activity by the North West Company, whichnbsp;was formed in 1783. Previous to this period, some adventurousnbsp;Englishmen had applied to our government and obtained a charter,nbsp;and had formed numerous settlements or factories for a trade in fursnbsp;at the south and east of Hudson�s Bay. As early as 1668, and fromnbsp;this time to 1759, the French and English nations were continuallynbsp;contending for the mastery in these regions, and the forts and factories were constantly taken and retaken by bath parties. But whennbsp;Canada was conquered by the British from France in 1759, these disputes were put an end to, and the British continued to trade alone,nbsp;but employing men of French extraction, till in 1783 they were joinednbsp;by a number of adventurers from the Highlands of Scotland, who, afternbsp;a httle while, joined their funds with the English traders, and thus thenbsp;North-West Company was established. It became very prosperous,nbsp;and extended its operations to the remotest quarters of America ; theirnbsp;capital amounted in 1799 to �120,000. They made a practice of usingnbsp;ardent spirits as a principal article of traffic with the natives, who huntednbsp;the animals for them and received their pay in brandy and rum ; thusnbsp;many great and evil consequences ensued, and fighting among themselvesnbsp;followed their habits of drinking and intoxication. The North-Westnbsp;Company was the rival of the older-established body, the Hudson�s Baynbsp;Company ; and for many years these two mercantile bodies carried on anbsp;furious contest with each other, and having no laws to restrain theirnbsp;impetuosity and jealousies, much harm was done, both to their ownnbsp;interest, and the morals of the savage aborigines,�till at length, innbsp;1820, the North-West Company became involved beyond their capital,nbsp;and transferred all their property and means of influence into the handsnbsp;of the Hudson�s Bay Company ; and thus these two concerns werenbsp;united, with much advantage to the peace of the fur countries and thenbsp;permanent interests of the trade, as well as to the benefit of the Indiannbsp;tribes. The present Hudson�s Bay Company is the only survivor of thenbsp;numerous exclusive and chartered bodies to which almost every branchnbsp;of British trade was at one time subjected. There are peculiar circum-

stances which would render this trade, if open, a very perilous one. It is carried on through vast regions, far from all controul of law, andnbsp;tenanted by savage races, who are easily prompted to deeds of violence.nbsp;When the Hudson�s Bay Company became complete masters of the furnbsp;trade, they withdrew the use of spirits as a means of traffic with thenbsp;natives, and even prohibited any from passing to the northward of Cumberland-house. During the time that the two companies were strivingnbsp;for the mastery, bands of adventurous hunters with no permanentnbsp;interests in the country, caught and killed all the animals they couldnbsp;reach, without any regard to preserving the species : thus many valuable kinds of fur-bearing animals were becoming almost exterminated,nbsp;or greatly diminished. At present the Hudson�s Bay Company prohibitnbsp;all wasteful modes of capture, and have taken every measure for restoringnbsp;the numbers of these valuable creatures, by removing their stations fromnbsp;districts where they had become scarce, and making laws regarding thenbsp;mode and time of destroying them. The Company possesses the entirenbsp;jurisdiction of these territories (unless in criminal cases, when the courtsnbsp;in Canada exercise a joint power). The supreme direction is vested in anbsp;governor, deputy-governor, and seven directors, who hold their sittingsnbsp;in London. A resident governor appointed by the London Board has thenbsp;general superintendence of all the settlements (forts, houses, or factories,nbsp;as they are indifferently called), which are now extremely numerous,�nbsp;upwards of 100 in number,�and very widely scattered over the wholenbsp;north and west regions of British America, from Labrador to the Rockynbsp;Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, and from the Great Slave Lake northwards to the Lakes Erie and Ontario, southwards. The chief use ofnbsp;these houses, is to enable the servants and officers of the Company tonbsp;live secure from the attacks of the wild Indian tribes, and to form deposits or stores for their furs and skins. The acting officers consist ofnbsp;chief factors, each of whom has charge of several posts, of principal andnbsp;secondary traders, and clerks. Four-fifths of the Company�s servantsnbsp;are Scotchmen, who are more hardy, active, and enterprizing than anynbsp;people, and the least liable to bad habits. In general too they havenbsp;been well educated,�many at the University of Aberdeen. These officers perform perilous journeys, and undergo hardships which to thosenbsp;accustomed to the comforts of civilized life, appear almost incredible.nbsp;They often spend whole winters on the banks of rivers and lakes, wherenbsp;their only food is the fish they draw from the waters,�without bread,nbsp;vegetables, or any other article of sustenance. Throughout the woodynbsp;countries east of the Rocky Mountains, the native Indians are employednbsp;in hunting the rich-furred animals, for the purpose of selling them tonbsp;the Company ; and they receive in return a supply of provisions, guns,

and other necessary articles. When at the forts, for traffic or other purposes, they live at the Company�s expense, often during three monthsnbsp;in the year. Every Company�s house, or fort, serves as a hospital, tonbsp;which they resort during sickness for food or medicine. These poornbsp;natives, since the use of spirits has been in a great degree discontinuednbsp;by the laws of the Company, have become much more peaceable, havenbsp;made some progress in civilization, and their numbers are in some partsnbsp;increasing. The most laudable efforts have been made by the Hudson�snbsp;Bay Company to instruct and civilize them, and they have maintainednbsp;at a great expense many teachers and missionaries for them. The wholenbsp;number of Indians roaming over the territory east of the Rocky Mountains (exclusive of Labrador) is computed to be about 150,000.

There are other Indian tribes of a different class, inhabiting the extensive prairies owned by the United States. They are numerous, and more fierce and warlike than the northern Indians in the British dominions. They subsist chiefly by the chase of the buffaloes, which roamnbsp;in vast herds over those wide plains. The natives west of the Rockynbsp;Mountains, were formerly fierce, and often waging bloody wars withnbsp;each other and with the Company�s servants ; but now the best understanding has been established between them and the British traders ;nbsp;and an extension of the Company�s settlements is ardently desired bynbsp;them, probably with a view to traffic.*

The United States of North America now form a free and independent state, thickly populated, but they were originally British colonies, asnbsp;well as Canada, Nova Scotia, amp;c. The first efforts to form Britishnbsp;colonies in North America were made in the reign of Queen Elizabeth,nbsp;under the enterprizing Sir Walter Raleigh and others. New Englandnbsp;(now the most flourishing of the American states) was peopled in consequence of religious zeal; as, when Charles I. established the Episcopal form of church-government in England, many of those whonbsp;were attached to the Presbyterian form, quitted their native country,nbsp;and settled in America. The state of Maryland owed its establishment to the Protestant persecutions, after the Puritan party gained thenbsp;ascendancy in England, and was named after Queen Henrietta Maria.nbsp;After the Restoration of King Charles H. Carolina was settled bynbsp;some English noblemen, to whom land was granted by royal authority. Pennsylvania was a colony of Quakers, under Williamnbsp;Penn, settled in 1682. Lastly, Georgia was settled in the reign ofnbsp;George IL, with a view of finding employment for the distressed labourers of our own country. The American Revolution, which severed

all these fine and flourishing colonies from the mother-country, was caused by the Parliament and Government in England wishing to enforce an undue amount of taxes upon them. Aided by France, Spain,nbsp;and Holland, after some struggle, they obhged Great Britain to acknowledge their complete independence in the year 1783.

The Americans first began to emigrate from the originally settled states, to the countries west of the AUeghany Mountains, in 1767,nbsp;when they formed the state of Kentucky. The American Congressnbsp;afterwards passed a resolution, admitting to the rank of a separate statenbsp;every settlement which had reached the number of 60,000 souls. Onnbsp;this ground, Tennessee was admitted in 1796 ; Ohio in 1802, Indiananbsp;in 1816 ; Illinois in 1818; Missouri in 1821 ; Michigan and Arkansasnbsp;in 1836 ; and, out of the vast extent of the North-West territory, twonbsp;governments, Wisconsin and Iowa, have since been formed. The conflicts and contentions were so violent between these border state-settlersnbsp;and the native Indians of America, that Congress came to the determination to remove aU the latter tribes to the west of the river Mississipi.nbsp;They have there provided for them an extensive territory, reaching fromnbsp;the boundaries of the Missouri and Arkansas states to the Rocky Mountains, and northwards from the (Lower) Red River * to the river Lanbsp;Platte, which is guaranteed to them in perpetuity. There still remainnbsp;some tribes to the east of the Mississippi.! The whole number included in the territories of the United States is calculated to be aboutnbsp;300,000.� There is besides a small nation of Indians in the forests andnbsp;marshes of Florida, who continue to set the whole power of the Statesnbsp;at defiance, and have never yet been subdued.

* Confusion often arises in the minds of uninstructed readers, owing to the name � Red River� being given to two distinct rivers in North America. One falls into Lakenbsp;Winnipeg, and is that whereon the Church Missionary settlements are formed; and thenbsp;other (just mentioned) is a branch of the Mississippi, and separates the Missouri territory from the Mexican states. I therefore, by way of distinction, generally call it thenbsp;� lowerquot; Red River.

It is among these Indians that the missionary societies of America, aided by their government, have been chiefly engaged ; the States having liberally supplied them withnbsp;implements of industry and the means of civilization ; but by the accounts of the missionaries, they often prefer to lead a wandering and unsettled life.

The Indians under British protection are dispersed in small villages and settlements in different parts of Upper and Lower Canada, as wellnbsp;as in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, These have not only remainednbsp;peaceably under our sway, but they have repeatedly taken up arms innbsp;England�s cause against her foes. In consideration of the services thusnbsp;rendered to Britain during the war, and in compensation for the encroachments made on their domain, each individual, on repairing to certainnbsp;fixed stations appointed by government, receives a certain amount ofnbsp;goods as an annual present. Several thousands come every year fromnbsp;beyond the western frontier, a distance, in some cases, of four and fivenbsp;hundred miles, and some even from the United States. The number innbsp;Upper Canada who came for these presents in 1828 was nearly 16,000,nbsp;and in Lower Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, rather morenbsp;than 3,500. At the same time, there are, in the immense forest territory, which the hand of cultivation has not yet approached, considerablenbsp;numbers of Indians who maintain their wild independence, and hold nonbsp;relations with Europeans. There are four places of annual resort fornbsp;the government-gifts in Lower Canada besides Quebec, and five innbsp;Upper Canada, namely, York (or Toronto), Kingston, Fort Georgenbsp;(Niagara), Amherstburg, and Drummond Island. It is estimated thatnbsp;each individual in Upper Canada receives on the average to the value ofnbsp;about 18s. Enghsh money. The Ojibbewas who were lately shown innbsp;London, had demanded of their � great mother,� as they call our queen,nbsp;that they might be allowed to have copper-kettles given them, insteadnbsp;of brass or iron, and were much gratified at their request being granted.nbsp;The goods given are generally linen, cottons, and calicoes, gartering ofnbsp;fancy colours, blankets, combs, knives, shoemakers� awls, needles,nbsp;kettles, guns, lead-ball, shot, tobacco, amp;c. ; but since the diffusion ofnbsp;civilization and religion among some of the tribes, many have desired tonbsp;exchange these presents for houses, implements of agriculture, andnbsp;other useful articles, and even some have begun to wish for money,nbsp;which happily they no longer abuse as formerly.

The natives of North America are divided into two distinct classes ; those whom we call Indians, who are scattered thinly over almost allnbsp;these wild and desolate regions ; and the Esquimaux, who are foundnbsp;inhabiting all the shores of the Arctic or Polar Seas.* The early discoverers of America were surprised to find among the native tribes ofnbsp;the northerly regions, warriors, statesmen, and orators, and to see innbsp;them a proud race, of dignified appearance, terrible in war, mild innbsp;peace, maintaining order without the restraint of law, and uniting bynbsp;the closest ties the members of the same community. Such was thenbsp;general character of the aborigines of North America, especially as presented by those who dwelt on the borders of the rivers and lakes ofnbsp;Canada. The three great tribes inhabiting part of the States, and thenbsp;whole of Canada, when the French first took possession of the country,nbsp;were the Algonquins, the Hurons, and the Iroquois, or Five Nations.nbsp;The Delawares, though now some of them are located in Upper Canada,nbsp;were formerly further removed to the west.

The complexion of the American Indians is of a red or copper colour. The Red Indians appear to have been originally limited to the easternnbsp;tribes of North America, as the people of Nootka Sound and other parts

of the North-Western coasts are nearly as white as Europeans. The American Indians are by some thought to be nearest allied to thenbsp;Mongol or Tartar race ; while again, in some particulars, they are foundnbsp;to resemble the copper-coloured Polynesians. They appear to resemblenbsp;the New Zealanders in their thirst for blood and revenge, their fiercenbsp;war-cries and dances, their regard for the bones of their ancestors, theirnbsp;burying their dead in a sitting posture, their bitter lamentations on thenbsp;death of their relatives, and the ancient practice of cutting themselvesnbsp;to show their grief, the manner they bring up their children (the boysnbsp;to hunt and war, the girls to hard work), their councils held in time ofnbsp;war or dilficulty, and their being divided into numerous tribes, eachnbsp;having a head or chief. In appearance their foreheads are low, theirnbsp;eyes small, deep-set, and black, the nose rather small, with wide nostrils, and the mouth large with somewhat thick lips ; the height of thenbsp;men is generally above middle size, with broad shoulders and well-proportioned limbs, the women are short and heavy-looking, (owing perhaps to the oppressive drudgery they are compelled to undergo.) Thenbsp;hair of both sexes, (like their allied type the Mongols,) is straight,nbsp;coarse, and jet black, and growing to a great length. Like the latternbsp;nations, too, they (that is, the men,) remove it from every part of thenbsp;head, except a single tuft on the crown, which they cherish with muchnbsp;care, and allow to grow very long, and to which they often attach largenbsp;bunches of feathers, and other gaudy and fantastic ornaments. Theynbsp;paint their bodies and smear them over writh oil and grease ; and in war,nbsp;the countenance is rendered more ferocious by various lines and marksnbsp;of black and bright red paint. This custom of painting their facesnbsp;and bodies, is somewhat similar to the barbarous custom of tattooingnbsp;employed by the South Sea Islanders. The colours they use, are madenbsp;up of soot scraped from the bottom of kettles, and the juices of herbsnbsp;having a green, yellow, or above all, a vermilion tint, mixed togethernbsp;with oil or grease, and this they either rub in, or fix into the skin bynbsp;slight incisions made with needles and sharp pointed bones. The Ojib-bewas who lately visited England, were delighted to find in this countrynbsp;a ready prepared supply of oil-paint, of bright and gaudy colours, withnbsp;which they could adorn their persons at a small expense.

The garments of the American Indians are simple, and chiefly made of leather and prepared skins, though they have of late years adoptednbsp;for clothing materials of English manufacture. Instead of shoes, theynbsp;wear what are called mocassins, made of two pieces of soft leathernbsp;(generally deer skin) joined together behind and in front, these arenbsp;embroidered and very neatly sewn by the women. Their garmentsnbsp;used to be made entirely of the skins of wild animals ; but now most

of them wear a shirt of calico, or printed cotton, and leggings, and pouches of common cloth, for which the gartering of gaudy coloursnbsp;serves for binding and ornamental borders ; for the outer covering ornbsp;great coat, a blanket is decidedly preferred, though many (as thenbsp;Ojibbewas) wear this of skin, fringed, and bordered after their fashion.nbsp;When any piece of European finery strikes their fancy, they eagerlynbsp;seek to procure it, and combine it often with their own dress. Theynbsp;are remarkably fond of ornaments of every sort and kind, as stringsnbsp;of beads, or shells, and the Ojibbewas who came to England in 1844,nbsp;were charmed at discovering and procuring some common brass thimbles, such as poor children here make use of, the end of which theynbsp;knocked out or perforated, and strung them by hundreds to wear innbsp;long rows round their necks. Upon occasions of ceremony, or whennbsp;exposed to cold, they wear a short shirt or frock, made of skin or cloth,nbsp;and fastened at the neck, in addition to their other dress, and over thisnbsp;their blanket or loose robe of skins. The men usually wear the skinnbsp;of the particular animal, which is considered the badge of their tribe,nbsp;hanging loose to their girdle, and the figure of their protecting charm ornbsp;guardian power is painted upon their breast, though it may often be nothing but the beak or claw of a bird, or the hoof of a cow, or somenbsp;such insignificant object ! The dress of the females scarcely differs fromnbsp;that of the men, except that their aprons or petticoats of skin reach tonbsp;the knees, and they are fond of large pieces of European material,nbsp;which they fold around their persons. They wear their hair loose andnbsp;flowing, and are fond of collecting ornaments for their heads andnbsp;persons. In many tribes both men and women have availed themselvesnbsp;of European intercourse to procure each a small mirror, in which, fromnbsp;time to time, they view their personal decorations, taking care thatnbsp;everything shall be in the most perfect order.

The habitations of the Indians receive much less of their attention than the embellishment of their persons. The bark of trees is theirnbsp;chief material, both for houses and boats ; they peel it off with greatnbsp;skill, sometimes stripping a whole tree in one piece. This coating isnbsp;spread, not unskilfully, over a frame-work of poles, and fastened to themnbsp;by strips of the tough rind of trees, and this forms their dwelling. Thenbsp;shape, according to the owner�s fancy, resembles a tub, a cone, or anbsp;cart-shed, the mixture of which gives to an Indian village a confusednbsp;and irregular appearance. Light and heat are admitted only by annbsp;aperture at the top, through which also the smoke escapes. These structures are sometimes upwards of a hundred feet long, and inhabited bynbsp;two or three different families. Four of them are occasionally placednbsp;in a square, open each at one side, with a common fire in the centre.

Formerly the Iroquois Indians had houses somewhat superior, adorned even with some rude carving ; but these were burnt down by the Frenchnbsp;settlers, and have never been rebuilt in the same style, but some travellers assert that the Choctaws and Chickasaws, more towards the south,nbsp;build houses of well-hewn planks of wood neatly joined.

In point of intellect, the mental faculties of the American savage are displayed in a remarkable degree. He shows a decided superiority overnbsp;the uninstructed labourer in a civilized country, the energies of whosenbsp;mind are benumbed amid the daily round of mechanical occupation.* Thenbsp;Indian spends much of his time in arduous and difficult enterprizes wherenbsp;much contrivance is needed, and from which he must often extricate himself by presence of mind and ingenuity. His senses, particularly those ofnbsp;seeing and smelling, acquire a very great strength and acuteness, and innbsp;his wanderings he gathers a minute acquaintance with the geography ofnbsp;the countries he traverses. He can even draw a rude outline of themnbsp;by applying a mixture of charcoal and grease to prepared skins, and onnbsp;seeing a regular map, he soon understands its construction, and readilynbsp;finds out places. He easily finds his way through the forests by merelynbsp;observing the different aspect of the trees or shrubs when exposed to thenbsp;north or to the south, as also the position of the sun, which he cannbsp;point out when hidden by clouds. Other faculties of a higher order,nbsp;also, are improved and strengthened by the scenes amid which theirnbsp;savage life is spent. The Indians are divided into a number of httlenbsp;communities, between which are actively carried on war, n�gociation,nbsp;treaty, and alliance. To extend the possessions of their own tribe, or tonbsp;destroy those of the tribes hostile to them, are the constant aims ofnbsp;every member of these little communities. For these ends, schemesnbsp;are deeply laid, and deeds of daring valour performed. Embassies arenbsp;constantly passing from one tribe to another, which develop in an extraordinary manner their powers of oratory. On every emergency anbsp;council of the tribe is called, when the chiefs make long and eloquentnbsp;speeches, prefacing each separate part of their discourse by delivering anbsp;string or belt of wampum (prepared skin), on which is figured a rudenbsp;sketch of the substance of the debate. A � string of wampum� is anbsp;narrow strip of leather, on which are strung various beads made ofnbsp;the muscle-shell, and of different colours. The women weave thesenbsp;strings very dextrously into belts, three or four inches wide, andnbsp;three feet long, and mark them with different figures agreeing with

* Dr. Morse (an American missionary) draws the following picture of the Cherokee Indians in 1822nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;� The character of the Cherokees for courage, fidelity, hospitality,

and cleanliness, stands high. They are a fine race of men, polite in their manners, and fond of improvements in the arts of life.�

the subjects contained in the speech, and the colour shows the import of the transaction. These belts of wampum supply the place of booksnbsp;in some degree, as they have no written or pictorial mode of expressing themselves on paper ; the absence of which, however, is supplied in a great measure by their extremely retentive memories. Thenbsp;wampums are preserved as public documents ; and when brought outnbsp;on special occasions, the orators, and even the old women of the tribe,nbsp;can repeat verbatim the circumstance to which each referred. Europeansnbsp;have thus been able to collect information respecting the revolutions ofnbsp;many of the Indian nations, for several ages preceding their own arrival.nbsp;The two principal languages of the Indians are the Delaware and thenbsp;Iroquois, and all the others are dialects of these. In things relating tonbsp;common life, these languages are remarkably copious, but they are verynbsp;deficient in expression in a general point of view. Before the laboursnbsp;of the missionaries among them, they had no terms to express spiritualnbsp;things, but since the Gospel has been preached among them, their language has gained much in this respect.*

The food of the American natives is chiefly fish, and the game they catch or kill in hunting. A coarse kind of maize is their principal grain ;nbsp;this, when threshed, is roasted on the coals, but the most favourite preparation of it they call sagamity, which is a species of pap made of thenbsp;bruised corn, and is thrown into the pot along with the produce of thenbsp;chase. They never eat their meat raw, but rather overboiled ; nor cannbsp;they be brought to endure salt or pepper, or any species of condiment.nbsp;In the Indian�s family, all the drudgery and hard work devolves uponnbsp;the women. They till the ground, and prepare it for their maize, waternbsp;melons and pumpkins, carry wood and water, build huts, make canoes,nbsp;and catch their fish ; in the latter employment, and in reaping the harvest, their lords do occasionally deign to give their aid. The conclusionnbsp;of their harvest they celebrate by a festival, and the grain is lodged innbsp;large stores under ground lined with bark of trees, where it keeps extremely well. The pains they take to cultivate the ground varies withnbsp;different tribes. Some neglect it altogether, and subsist entirely by hunting and fishing ; and when these means of subsistence fail, depend uponnbsp;the miserable resource of the lichen, called tripe-de-roche. Their generosity in relieving each other�s wants, scarcely knows any bounds, and nonbsp;member of a tribe can be in the least danger of starving, if the rest havenbsp;wherewith to supply him. As a people, they are bound together bynbsp;the strictest union,�the honour and welfare of the clan, or tribe, supply their ruling principle, and form a social tie, linking the members to

each other, and rendering extremely rare both personal quarrels and deeds of violence, and banishing entirely that coarse and abusive language, which is so usual among the vulgar even in civilized communities. This feeling, added to the dignity and self-command considerednbsp;by them suitable to warriors, renders their deportment exceedinglynbsp;pleasing. They are completely free from that false shame which isnbsp;termed mauvaise honte. When seated at table with Europeans of thenbsp;highest rank, they retain the most thorough self-possession, and at thenbsp;same time are free from all awkwardness of manner. Considered asnbsp;heathens, they show great decency and propriety in their conduct,�arenbsp;friendly, sociable, and courteous to strangers. They are all equallynbsp;noble and free, allowing no distinctions of rank, the only differencenbsp;among them proceeds from their age, dexterity, courage, or office.nbsp;Like the New Zealander, presents are very acceptable to an Indian, butnbsp;he will not acknowledge himself under an obligation. The deliberatenbsp;coolness of their manners in common life is put on, as they think itnbsp;shows their dignity ; but they have in reality very strong and warmnbsp;affections.* Their language is figurative in the highest degree, and fullnbsp;of images addressed to the senses. Thus, to � throw up the hatchet,�nbsp;or � put on the great cauldron,� is to begin a war ; and ambassadorsnbsp;sent from one tribe to another to propose peace, would say, � We rendnbsp;the clouds asunder, and drive away all darkness from the heavens, thatnbsp;the Sun of peace may shine with brightness over us all,�

But the most prominent object of the savage American Indian�s pursuit and passion, is his warfare. Until he is brought under the dominion of the Prince of Peace, this is what presents him under the darkest aspect, and renders him more like a fiend than a man. The Indiansnbsp;love war, and glory in its deeds ; but what keeps alive the hostilitiesnbsp;existing between the tribes, is their spirit of revenge. Every Indiannbsp;who falls into the power of an enemy, must have his ghost appeased bynbsp;a victim from that hostile race : thus one contest brings on another ;nbsp;and they are remarkable for concealing their passions and waiting for anbsp;convenient opportunity of gratifying them. The extension of theirnbsp;boundaries and the power of their tribe, are the frequent occasions ofnbsp;their wars ; which last object they seek to promote, by adopting theirnbsp;prisoners into their own ranks. They often torture their victims mostnbsp;cruelly, and in these horrid spectacles, it is shocking to think that thenbsp;women take as active a part as the men ; in short, their whole warfarenbsp;is most savage and merciless, commencing with their wild and fiercenbsp;war-dance, accompanied with shouts and yellings the most terrific.

* See � History of the Moravian Mission in North America,� Seeleys, 1840. 2 E

Their weapons are the bow and arrow, or more frequently now, the musket, the hatchet (or tomahawk) and the scalping-knife. Their quarrels and furiousness in war have been greatly increased and promotednbsp;by their use of the rum and other spirituous liquors introduced intonbsp;their country, and made an article of barter or trade, by the white settlers ; but a great improvement in this respect has taken place since thenbsp;labours of the American missionaries and others have so much increased.nbsp;In deciding whether they shall cruelly put to death an enemy whomnbsp;they have taken prisoner, or adopt him into their clan, the women havenbsp;much influence, according as they either demand revenge for the loss ofnbsp;a husband or brother, or solicit that the captive may supply the vacancy.nbsp;The stranger being received into the family as a husband, brother, ornbsp;son, is treated with the utmost tenderness ; and she, who had beforenbsp;exerted her utmost ingenuity in torturing him, now nurses the woundsnbsp;she has made, and loads him with caresses. Although these savagenbsp;people delight in war, yet they often desire an interval of tranquillity,nbsp;and they observe much ceremony in making peace. They seal the contract by burying a hatchet. The calumet, or pipe of peace, accompaniesnbsp;every embassy ; and to smoke together is the chief cement of nationalnbsp;union. Their chief amusements are smoking, music, and dancing ; thenbsp;two latter form an indispensable part of every solemn festival. They keepnbsp;good time ; but their music is so exceedingly simple, that this impliesnbsp;little merit,�their airs seldom embracing more than five or six difl�rentnbsp;notes. In their dances their movements, monotonous but violent, consist in stamping furiously on the ground, and often brandishing theirnbsp;arms in a manner, compared by an able writer to a baker convertingnbsp;flour into dough. They conclude with a loud shout or howl, whichnbsp;echoes frightfully through the woods. Their dances, in celebration ofnbsp;particular events are more varied, and often form a very expressivenbsp;pantomine. They use a great deal of action in their ordinary conversation, and are so expressive in their gestures, that n�gociations for peacenbsp;have often been conducted, and alliances made between petty states andnbsp;families who understood nothing of each other�s language.*

* See Murray�s � History of British America,� vol, i. pp. 44- 94, which is extracted largely from the writings of Weld, Lawrence, Humboldt, Chateaubriand, Charlevoix,nbsp;Carver, Adair, amp;c.

The earliest visitors of North America, on seeing among the Indians neither priests, temples, idols, nor sacrifices, imagined they were anbsp;people destitute of religious opinions ; but a more close inquiry showednbsp;that a belief in the spiritual world, however imperfect, had the greatestnbsp;influence over almost all their actions. Under the titles of the � Greatnbsp;Spirit,� the � Master of Life,� the �Maker of Heaven and Earth,� theynbsp;distinctly own a Supreme Ruler of the universe, and a controller of theirnbsp;destinies. According to Long, the Indians among whom he lived,nbsp;ascribed every event to the favour or anger of the Master of Life. Theynbsp;address him for their daily subsistence ; they believe him to give themnbsp;presence of mind in battle, and amid tortures they thank him for givingnbsp;them courage. Yet, though these ideas of an Almighty Being are deeplynbsp;engraven on their minds, yet they are mixed with others, which shownbsp;how imperfectly man�s natural reason will assist him in thinking rightlynbsp;on this subject. The term they use in their language for Great Spirit,nbsp;does not convey the idea of an uncreated Being. It merely implies somenbsp;Being possessed of high and mysterious powers, and in this sense isnbsp;applied by them to men, and even to animals. The brute creationnbsp;which occupy a considerable portion of their attention, is often lookednbsp;upon by them as being gifted with supernatural powers,�a gross absurdity, which however they share with the heathens of Egypt and ofnbsp;India. Every tribe, and sometimes every individual, is found to differ

in his ideas of what his god is, and in whom or where he resides. Some form an idea of a certain mystical animal who, when the earth wasnbsp;buried in water, drew it up again :* others account the hare to be thenbsp;residence of a superior power or being. Among the Attawa tribe alonenbsp;the heavenly bodies are the objects of veneration. To look into futuritvnbsp;has always been a favourite object of superstition, and has been attemptednbsp;by heathens in various ways : the American Indian seeks it in his dreams,nbsp;which always bear in his eyes a sacred character, and they conduct theirnbsp;affairs according to their supposed interpretation. We have said thatnbsp;every man has his own peculiar object of veneration ; what this is, isnbsp;always determined when the youth arrives at manhood, and the mostnbsp;senseless and absurd ceremonies precede the dream which is to discovernbsp;to him the idol or charm, destined ever after to afford him aid and protection. When however great misfortunes befal him, his Manitou, ornbsp;guardian Spirit is changed for another venerated object, which is installed with the same round of ceremonies as the first. Their absence ofnbsp;all temples, worship, and sacrifices is remarkable ; but the missionariesnbsp;have been led to suspect that their solemn feasts, at which it is a rulenbsp;that every thing presented must be eaten, bore an idolatrous character,nbsp;and were held in honour of the � Great Hare.� The belief in a fife beyondnbsp;the grave is most sincerely felt and cherished by the American Indians,nbsp;and they have an idea, though by no means an exalted one, of the regionnbsp;where they hope to be transported after death. It amounts to a prolongation of their present life and enjoyments, under more favourablenbsp;circumstances, and with the same desires furnished in greater choicenbsp;and abundance. In that brighter land the sun ever shines unclouded,nbsp;the forests abound with deer, the lakes and rivers with fish,�benefitsnbsp;which are farther increased in their imagination by a faithful wife, andnbsp;dutiful children. Sacrifices made with a view to pacify God and theirnbsp;inferior deities, are among the religious ceremonies of the Indians (according to the Moravian missionaries). They tell us, that they sacrificenbsp;to a hare, because the first ancestor of their tribes had that name. Tonbsp;Indian corn they sacrifice bear�s flesh, but to deer and beasts Indiannbsp;corn ; but they deny that they pay any adoration to these good spirits,nbsp;and say they only worship the true God through them. � For God,�nbsp;say they, � does not require men to pay adoration immediately to him,nbsp;but notifies to them in dreams what beings they are to make offeringsnbsp;to, and consider as their guardian spirits.� They shew a decided reverence for the dead, and venerate the bones of their ancestors,�these

being considered by the Indian as the strongest tie to his native soil, and when forced to quit it, these mouldering fragments are, if possible,nbsp;conveyed along with them. All cases of sickness they ascribe to thenbsp;agency of malignant evil spirits, and use numerous absurd and superstitious arts to scare and drive them out of the possessed person. Theirnbsp;firm belief in these preposterous remedies has always been one of thenbsp;great obstacles to missionary success, even among the converts to Christianity, and the French missionaries could never fully undeceive theirnbsp;disciples, as they thought that the magicians or sorcerers really receivednbsp;aid from the prince of darkness.*

The Delawares hold several religious feasts or sacrifices in the course of the year : one is made to a certain voracious spirit, who, according tonbsp;their notions, is never satisfied. This idea may probably arise fromnbsp;their own practice of making long fasts, and then eating most voraciously to a great excess. Another of their festivals is made in honournbsp;of fire, and at all, feasting, drinking, and dancing in a solemn mannernbsp;are carried on for many days together.

Respecting the religion of the unconverted American Indians, Mr. Cockran in 1835, thus writes : � They are quite indilferent respectingnbsp;the fate of their souls in a future state. All their acts and conjurationsnbsp;are employed, and their sacrifices ofiered for the benefit of their bodies,nbsp;and for the enjoyments of the present life. In their prayers they asknbsp;for food, health, long life, abundance of pleasure, and the life of theirnbsp;enemies ; but no inquiry is made after the favour of God, nor a futurenbsp;state, no sacrifice is offered to make the � Master of Life,� favourable tonbsp;them in another world.�

� 77ic Lord hath made hare his hol� arm in the eyes of all the nations^ and all the ends of the earth shall see the saliiation of our God.'quot;�Isa. lii. 10.

If we examine the tabular view of stations at the close of this chapter, we shall find that the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel innbsp;Foreign Parts, bears a very prominent part. This society � was incorporated by royal charter in 1701, for the receiving, managing, andnbsp;disposing of such funds as might be contributed for the religious instruction of her Majesty�s subjects beyond the seas ; for the maintenance

of clergymen in the plantations, colonies, and factories of Great Britain, and for the propagation of the gospel in those parts.� *

The people of Canada, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland, inhabiting the towns or stations inserted in our Tabular View, are chiefly emigrants from the British isles, who go forth in quest of employment, and who, owing to their poverty, cannot be expected, fornbsp;some years at least, to provide for themselves the means of pubhc worship, or the education of their children. At the time of the Americannbsp;war this society maintained 43 clergymen in the part of America nownbsp;called the United States ; but when these states were separated fromnbsp;Great Britain, it withdrew all these, as by the terms of the charter itnbsp;can only act in the colonies ; and in 1784, at the close of the war, it hadnbsp;ten missionaries in Nova Scotia, two in New Brunswick, two in Canadanbsp;(where the inhabitants were then composed of one-fifth Protestants andnbsp;four-fifths Roman Catholics), one in Cape Breton, and one in Florida ;nbsp;in all sixteen clergymen in British North America. This last-namednbsp;missionary in Florida was not continued for more than two years afternbsp;the peace ; and we cannot ascertain that any missionary has visited thisnbsp;spot either before or since. The population of Canada, especially of thenbsp;Upper province has increased extremely since the period we have beennbsp;alluding to. In 1806, it was reckoned to be 70,000; in 1823^ it hadnbsp;grown to 150,000; in 1833, it was 296,000; andin 1843, it had increased to 500,000 souls. Not more than 80, out of the 324 townshipsnbsp;into which Upper Canada is divided, are supplied with clergymen, andnbsp;that in such a manner that they have not more than one pastor, where,nbsp;in England, there would be twenty ; and even then the provision madenbsp;for his support is so scanty, that he is often scarcely raised above thenbsp;pressure of painfully straitened circumstances. The Society for thenbsp;Propagation of the Gospel has done much to improve this unhappy statenbsp;of things in the increasingly populous colonies of North America. Tlienbsp;number of clergy has been gradually increasing, owing to their unremitting exertions.

We have said there were two clergymen appointed by this Society to Canada in 1784 (one of whom was Dr. John Stuart, itinerant missionarynbsp;to the Mohawk Indians.) In 1800, their number had increased to 6 ;nbsp;in 1810, they numbered 11 missionaries in Canada, 8 in Newfoundland,nbsp;21 in New Brunswick, 34 in Nova Scotia and one in Cape Breton. Innbsp;1819, the number in Canada had increased from 6 to 10 ; and in 1825,nbsp;it amounted to 22 ; in 1827, to 30 ; in 1833, to 46 ; and the numbersnbsp;have at present reached to 90, and upwards, supported by the funds of

this Society. There are now five bishops appointed by the Church of England to watch over the religious welfare of our possessions in Northnbsp;America : 1, Nova Scotia, the oldest colonial bishopric of our Church ;nbsp;2. Montreal; 3. Toronto; 4. Newfoundland; and 5. (lately appointed)nbsp;New Brunswick. Under the present Bishop of Toronto, a college hasnbsp;been established at Coburg in Upper Canada, for the education of youngnbsp;men for the ministry, and 5 have already been ordained who were educated in America. And the same kind of institution has been effectednbsp;at LennoxviUe, in the district of Three Rivers, Lower Canada. Newfoundland was erected into a separate bishopric in 1839, at which timenbsp;the number of clergy belonging to the Established Church was only 10,nbsp;whereas it is now 26 ; and the Society is endeavouring, by its Sundaynbsp;and day-schools, and other means, to increase the value and benefits ofnbsp;true religion among the poor fishing inhabitants of this colony. Considering the extent of New Brunswick, this district has been butnbsp;badly supphed with ministers of the Church. A seminary has beennbsp;instituted in Newfoundland, where a hmited number of lay-readers andnbsp;students are to be prepared for the ministry.

The Bishop of Toronto, in a late pastoral letter to his clergy, characterizes � the Societies for Promoting Christian Knowledge and the Propagation of the Gospel, as the handmaids of the Church of England : Societies which for nearly a century-and-a-half have been actively employed in sowing the truth, by establishing missions, appointing faithfulnbsp;and zealous pastors, founding schools and colleges, building churches,nbsp;supplying the scriptures, prayer-books, and tracts, in vast abundancenbsp;through aU the colonial possessions of the British empire, and more especially through those of North America.� � Dreadful, indeed,� he continues, � would have been the moral and rehgious destitution of thousandsnbsp;in our settlements, but for their untiring labours. Unable to look forwardnbsp;to passing the Sabbath in the service of God, they must either have sunknbsp;into indifference and unbelief, or become the prey of destructive error ;nbsp;there would have been no clergyman to consult in the hour of difficulty�nbsp;no blessed sacraments for their children.�no holy ordinance of confirmation or matrimony for their sons and daughters. All these evils havenbsp;been to a great degree prevented by these great Societies, which sentnbsp;clergymen at the first opening of the provinces of North America, andnbsp;have continued to supply their number to the present time.� *

The Mohawk Indians were one of the tribes of the Six Nations, or Iroquois, ! and, at the conclusion of the American Revolution, were

* See � Annual Report of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel� for 1843. t These were the Mohawks, the Carpegas, the Oneidas, the Senecas, the Onondagos,nbsp;and the Tuscaroras, and they inhabited originally the state of New York.

settled by the bounty of government in Upper Canada, as a reward for their faithful adherence to the British cause during the war. To thisnbsp;tribe, the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel sent a missionary,nbsp;in 1823, and translated a portion of the Gospels into the Mohawk language ; they likewise printed a Catechism in their tongue, which had beennbsp;found in the British Museum ; but it was not at that time found practicable by the Society to continue its missions to the heathen tribes ofnbsp;Indians, owing to their unsettled habits of life : however, in 1837, it renewed its mission to the Mohawk Indians, and established one on thenbsp;northern shores of Lake Huron, and another in Manitoulin Island,nbsp;in Lake Superior, where the Ojibbewas, Ottawas, and other Indian tribes,nbsp;were willing to settle, and place themselves under instruction. And, innbsp;1844, it had five stations, entirely for the natives ; but no particular notices of them are published by the Society.

We next come to the labours of the Church Missionary Society in North America ; and these have been carried on exclusively among thenbsp;native Indians of the country, in the territories under the controul ofnbsp;the Hudson�s Bay Fur Company. The first attempt made by thisnbsp;Society to benefit the aborigines was suggested by Rev. John West, annbsp;active member of the Church Missionary Society, who was appointed bynbsp;the Hudson�s Bay Company chaplain to their settlement, recently formednbsp;on Red River, to the south of Lake Winnipeg. He ofiered his servicesnbsp;soon after his arrival in the country, in 1820, to establish schools amongnbsp;the Indians in the vicinity, and the Church Missionary Society placednbsp;�100 at his disposal, to enable him to make trial of his plan, the Company being favourable, and promising to render him every practicablenbsp;assistance. He was, the following year, appointed their missionary,nbsp;and, in 1823, the same Society sent Mr. David Jones to his assistance,nbsp;and a schoolmaster and mistress. By this time they had baptized fournbsp;promising Indian youths, and Mr. West had made a walking excursionnbsp;to Fort Churchill, on the shores of Hudson�s Bay ; the Indians of whichnbsp;place showed a great desire for instruction.

In 1825, the Church Missionary Society had two missionaries, the Rev. D. Jones and the Rev. W. Cochran, at the Red River settlement,nbsp;with an assistant under whom were 169 scholars, chiefly Ojibbewanbsp;Indians and half-breeds ; two sons of chiefs at the Columbia River,nbsp;west of the Rocky Mountains, were also in their school. Rev. Johnnbsp;West remained three years at Red River, during which time he laidnbsp;the foundation of this mission, and then returned to England. A neat,nbsp;small church of wood, with wooden spire, was finished before his departure, and was the first Protestant Church ever raised in these wilds ;nbsp;an engraving of which, with a most deeply interesting sketch of the

first establishing of this mission, may be found in the Missionary Register for 1826, p. 624.

Mr. Jones met with great encouragement from the willingness of the Indian boys to receive religious instruction ; and indeed both parentsnbsp;and children seemed devoted to their missionaries, and anxious to benefitnbsp;by their labours and love. During a part of the year, the pupils werenbsp;taught to labour in the fields belonging to the mission-farms ; and bynbsp;dealing kindly and gently with them, they soon overcame their distastenbsp;to regular and fixed employment, and soon acquired considerable knowledge. It may not be uninteresting to our readers to know that thenbsp;annual cost of an Indian youth�s education in the Church Missionarynbsp;Society�s schools, at the Red River settlement, is �14 for clothingnbsp;and maintenance. Two Indian boys having died in the school, thenbsp;parents showed much warm feeling on the occasion, and one of themnbsp;came a distance of three hundred miles, to mourn and lament fornbsp;his son. Like the New Zealanders, they showed their affection andnbsp;their sorrow by cutting and piercing themselves (especially theirnbsp;feet), tui they made the blood flow. A European settler having askednbsp;the father of one of these deceased youths to sell him a fine horsenbsp;he was riding, he refused it, saying, � he meant to keep it for thenbsp;Black Robe (the name they give to Protestant clergymen), in return fornbsp;the care he had taken of his boy.�

Mr. Jones made much progress with his Indian boys, and his labours with his Sunday classes were greatly blessed. It is natural to thenbsp;Indian mind to give close attention to every thing passing around them.nbsp;They were particularly fond of singing sacred hymns,* and the voices ofnbsp;the women were sweet and melodious. Mr. Jones finished building hisnbsp;second church before 1825, but it was greatly damaged by an overflowing of the river in 1826, which calamity was most patiently bornenbsp;by the Indian congregations, and had the happy effect of strengtheningnbsp;their religious feelings.

In 1830, two boys, whom Governor Simpson had brought to the Red River station, from Columbia, one of the Hudson�s Bay Company�snbsp;settlements west of the Rocky Mountains, went home to pay theirnbsp;friends a visit ; and on their return brought with them five other Indiannbsp;boys, to be instructed by the Church Missionary Society�s missionaries.nbsp;They are described in the missionary journals published at that time, as

* In Mr. Jones�s Journal, 1820, we find the following:�� In giving out to my young Indians the hymn in the � Sunday Scholar�s Companion�� Lord, while the little Heathennbsp;bend,��I was led to tell them of the cruelties practised in the East, which were alludednbsp;to in that hymn : they were all much affected^ and one of them said^ � Sir^ is there no schoolmaster there to tell tliem not

shrewd, active, and promising youths, and manifesting a great desire to learn.* The baptized converts were, up to the year 1830, chiefly fromnbsp;among the half-breeds, who were descended from European fathers andnbsp;Indian mothers ; but some few pure Indians had attended the means ofnbsp;grace with benefit, and were strict observers of the Sabbath. In 1831,nbsp;the missionaries write : �We have already seen two churches built,nbsp;and well filled with attentive audiences ; to these we have now added anbsp;third ; and what ought to increase our thankfulness stiU more, we havenbsp;a congregation ready to enter into it. It has been erected by thenbsp;voluntary exertions and contributions of the heads of 76 families, whonbsp;regularly attend divine service at � the Rapids.� They are all poor,nbsp;but their willingness has surmounted the impediment. This yearnbsp;(1831), the Society had 2 missionaries, 18 lay-assistants (4 of whomnbsp;were females), 6 schools, containing 191 male scholars, of whom 60nbsp;were native Indian boys, and 140 girls. Their attendants on divinenbsp;worship, at their three churches, amounted to 800, and their communicants, to 143.

Hitherto, from the commencement of this mission at Red River in 1820, the labours of the Society�s missionaries had been principallynbsp;confined to European settlers, the servants and agents of the Hudson�snbsp;Bay Company and half-caste Indians, with the exception of the nativenbsp;boys and girls in their schools ; but in 1833, Mr. Jones thus joyfullynbsp;writes, � we have long wished and prayed for something interestingnbsp;and encouraging to tell you of the native Indians. Thanks be to God,nbsp;the time is now arrived. I have, for the last eight months, preached,nbsp;through an interpreter, to about 70 or 80 Indians, whose regular attendance, devout attention, and extreme desire to learn, give us everynbsp;encouragement to proceed in the strength of the Lord. For severalnbsp;years many Cree-Indian families, from between Hudson�s Bay and Cumberland House have been drifting to our settlement. Last summernbsp;brought us ten families, and we determined on collecting them everynbsp;Sunday evening regularly ; and though often fatigued with riding andnbsp;preaching through our hot summer days, yet I feel this evening servicenbsp;as refreshing as cooling waters.� t

* The circumstance of the voluntary return of these boys, with five more from among their countrymen, was considered by the missionary as a great mark of the confidencenbsp;reposed in the white people by these independent sons of the wilderness. See � Missionary Register.�

The accounts from this purely Indian station in 1843, show that there are now two church services every Lord�s-day : one in English, when the attendance of natives isnbsp;about 350 ; the other in the Indian language, when about 250 assemble. There is alsonbsp;a daily weekly service, and Bible lectures in the school-room during four other eveningsnbsp;in the week. The Sunday-school contains 184 native Indians; and a native catechistnbsp;has the charge of a week-day school, containing upwards of 80 scholars.

In 1832, a most remarkable interposition of Providence occurred at the Red River station, at the time of a violent thunder-storm, in July,nbsp;1832. The lightning struck the dwelling-house of the Rev. Mr.nbsp;Cochran, and set it on fire; and though nine individuals were assemblednbsp;in the two rooms which were struck, the shock dividing the stones andnbsp;mortar asunder, and rending the floor beneath, yet not a single personnbsp;was in the smallest degree injured. In December, 1833, the missionariesnbsp;opened a weekly meeting at the Indian settlement, for the purposenbsp;of instructing the natives in the word of God, but very few attended ;nbsp;some knowing that the Christian religion does not allow of their havingnbsp;more than one wife at a time, were averse to this restraint ; and othersnbsp;were conjurors, who prided themselves in their deceitful art, and werenbsp;persuaded, they said, � that if they came to hear the word of God, thenbsp;knowledge of it would depart from them.� The heathen Indians ofnbsp;North America have a saying, that � the white Christians could nevernbsp;be taught their arts, or led astray by the devil, because they eat sonbsp;much salt with their food ! � In August, 1834, the missionaries describe the old and young at the Indian settlement, � busily employed innbsp;reaping their little patches of wheat and barley,� which they look uponnbsp;as a good sign of their improvement.

Mr. Cochrane, one of the Church Missionary Society�s missionaries, thus writes in 1838 : � I walked to-day to the Indian settlement tonbsp;baptize an infant ; the parents are an interesting pious couple ; thenbsp;mother has been making cloth, and had her children clothed, and hernbsp;blanket was of home-manufacture. I said to the husband, � Here isnbsp;the advantage of civilization ; should you die now, you would not leavenbsp;your family with the apprehension of perishing through hunger or cold ;nbsp;they have learnt the value of land and of human industry, these are anbsp;fortune to them, which will last while health and strength remain.�nbsp;He, interrupting me, said, � These are great advantages, which I oftennbsp;think of, and feel thankful for ; but they have heard of an existencenbsp;beyond the grave, and have learnt how to enter it. This I count thenbsp;greatest of aU my mercies ; when I leave them it shall be with thenbsp;expectation of meeting them again.� Here the tear of gratitude feU,nbsp;and the Indian�s voice faltered.� Mr. Cochrane adds : � Men wouldnbsp;often persuade us that we labour in vain, but we know by evidence, toonbsp;sublime and too certain to be shaken, that religion enters the heart ; andnbsp;being there, it assumes a degree of importance, which makes all othernbsp;concerns subservient to it.�

Thus the Church Missionary Society have continued steadily to pursue their unwearied labours in these remote and desolate regions, amidstnbsp;many great and trying difficulties, arising from the inclemency and

severity of the climate, the distance from civilized society, and the very peculiar character of the natives ; notwithstanding all which, considerable success has been vouchsafed to their labours. The station atnbsp;Cumberland House is under the care of a native catechist, Henry Budd;nbsp;and it is an interesting fact that this zealous and persevering servant ofnbsp;the Lord was one of the first-fruits of the Church Missionary Society�snbsp;labours in North-West America ; as he was one of the two boys fromnbsp;the Rocky Mountains, who were consigned by their parents to the Rev.nbsp;John West, in the year 1820.

The Bishop of Montreal paid a visit to the Society�s settlements at Red River in the summer of 1844, and thus expresses himself innbsp;writing to the secretaries : � It is impossible that I can write to younbsp;after my visit, without paying at least a passing tribute to the invaluable labours of those faithful men whom the Society has employed innbsp;that field of its extensive operations ; and the opportunity which wasnbsp;afforded me of contrasting the condition of the Indians who are undernbsp;their training and direction, with that of the unhappy heathens withnbsp;whom I came in contact during my journey from Montreal, signallynbsp;enabled me to appreciate the blessings of which the Society is thenbsp;instrument, and did indeed yield a beautiful testimony to the power andnbsp;reality of the gospel of Christ.�

A handsome and convenient church, well warmed, has lately been erected, in place of one of the small ones at first constructed at Rednbsp;River, and the attendance is very good : the young people prefer comingnbsp;when the prayers are read in English, but the old people naturally prefernbsp;the Indian service. In 1844, the missionaries were busily engagednbsp;teaching the Bible classes on Sunday, which included 25 Indian mennbsp;and 33 Indian women, besides the 95 scholars of the day-school, belonging to the Indian settlement. Many of the aged people havenbsp;learned the Lord�s Prayer, Creed, and Ten Commandments from theirnbsp;children and grandchildren, when returned from school. With regardnbsp;to the temporal state of this mission, it is stated, � that instead of thenbsp;miserable-looking native huts at first erected upon the Society�s settlements, are now to be seen neat white-washed cottages ; that severalnbsp;barns have been erected for their wheat and barley ; and the missionnbsp;farms are now fenced in with substantial fences ; that the Indians havenbsp;now a good stock of oxen, cows, and pigs, and some sheep and horses.nbsp;Several Indian women spin wool, and a great deal of home-made clothnbsp;is now manufactured. A marked improvement takes place yearly withnbsp;regard to the personal cleanliness of the natives, and also that of theirnbsp;dwellings. In fact, almost all the Christian Indians now wear eithernbsp;European clothing, or such as is made from the home-spun cloth, so

that there is little perceptible difference, in their appearance on the Sabbath, between the Indians and the other settlers.� The missionarynbsp;concludes this account in the following words : � Into whatever department of the station we look, there is abundant cause for thankfulness tonbsp;the Giver of all good that our labours have been so far owned andnbsp;blessed.�

In examining the tabular view of missionary stations, we next come to those of the United Brethren. Of all the various missions undertaken by these devoted, humble, and self-denying Christians, the historynbsp;of none is more remarkable than that among the native Indians of Northnbsp;America, whether we look at the extraordinary vicissitudes it has experienced, the continued persecutions it has suffered, or the character ofnbsp;the people among whom it was established. A history of this most interesting mission up to the year 1787, was published in German bynbsp;Bishop Loskiel, and has been translated into English by the late Rev.nbsp;C. J. La Trobe.

In Loskiel�s History of the Mission of the United Brethren in North America, we find the following passage : � In 1739, Christian Henrynbsp;Rauch was sent to New York, to commence a mission among some ofnbsp;the neighbouring tribes. He there met with some Indians who hadnbsp;come to that city to treat with the English Government. Upon theirnbsp;agreeing with his proposal to go and settle with them at Shekomeko,nbsp;their native residence, he proceeded there, and was received with muchnbsp;kindness by the savage Indians ; but when he spoke to them on religion they derided his instructions and laughed him to scorn. He nownbsp;suffered greatly from their treatment, but all his trials were forgotten,nbsp;when, after some time, he observed favourable symptoms of penitencenbsp;and grace in the hearts of the two Indians who he had at first met whennbsp;at New York. When these two men had embraced the truth, one ofnbsp;them named Tchoop, thus gave an account of his conversion : � I havenbsp;been a heathen, and am grown old among the heathen, therefore Inbsp;know how the heathen think. Once a preacher came and began to tellnbsp;us there was a God. We answered him, saying, � Dost thou think usnbsp;so ignorant as not to know that ? Go back to the place from whencenbsp;thou earnest.� Then another preacher came to us, and began to say,nbsp;� You must not steal, nor lie, nor get drunk.� To him we answered,nbsp;� Thou fool, dost thou think we do not know thatGo learn first thyself, and then teach thy own people to leave off these practices. Fornbsp;who are greater drunkards, or thieves, or liars than their own people ?nbsp;(He spoke of all Europeans ; alas ! English traders, principally henbsp;alluded to.) Thus we dismissed him. After some time. Brother Rauchnbsp;came into my hut, and sat down by me and spoke as follows, � I am

come to you in the name of the Lord of heaven and earth. He sends me to inform you that he will make you happy, and deliver you from thatnbsp;misery in which you at present lie. For this purpose he became a man,nbsp;gave his life a ransom, and shed his blood for us.� When he hadnbsp;finished speaking, he lay down upon a board, and fell asleep. I thennbsp;thought within myself, � What kind of man is this ? There he sleeps,nbsp;�I might kill him, and throw him out into the woods, and who wouldnbsp;regard itBut this gives him no care or concern. At the same time, Inbsp;could not forget his words. They constantly recurred to my mind.nbsp;Even when I slept I dreamt of that blood which Jesus Christ had shednbsp;for us. I found this to be something quite difi�rent to any. thing I hadnbsp;ever heard before, and I interpreted Christian Henry�s words to thenbsp;other Indians, Thus, through the grace of God, an awakening begannbsp;among us. I say therefore, brethren, preach Christ, our Saviour, andnbsp;his sufferings and death, if you would have your words to gain entrancenbsp;among the heathen.�*

On many other occasions the remarks which the converts made were simple yet striking. A trader having endeavoured to persuade Shabash,nbsp;a convert, that the Brethren were not privileged teachers, the Indiannbsp;eagerly replied, � It may be so, but I know what they have told me,nbsp;and what God has wrought within me. Look at my poor countrymennbsp;there, lying drunk before your door. Why do not you send privilegednbsp;teachers to convert them Four years ago, I also lived like a beast,nbsp;and not one of you troubled himself about me ; but when the Brethrennbsp;came, they preached the cross of Christ, and I have felt the power ofnbsp;his blood, so that sin has no longer dominion over me. Such are thenbsp;teachers we want.� t

In Brown�s History of Missions, p. 392, we find a most affecting narrative of the hardships and troubles the Brethren and their faithful Indian congregations suffered, aU through the French and English wars,nbsp;the wars between the settler and Indian tribes, and the American war.nbsp;The Brethren�s stations, between the year 1734, the date of their firstnbsp;mission, and 1784, the conclusion of the American war were all situated in the country between Philadelphia and the Michigan territorynbsp;west of Lake St. Clair. This country was inhabited and owned, at thatnbsp;time, by the Iroquois, or Six Nation confederacy of Indians, and thenbsp;Delawares, while the Hurons owned the shores of the lake of that name,nbsp;The persecutions of the Brethren and the Christian Indians (who in the

different settlements of the United Brethren in 1772, amounted in number to 720) arose from several causes. Partly from the hatred home to the Brethren by white settlers and traders, owing to the strictness ofnbsp;their lives,�partly to the fear of the white traders that by the Christianizing of the Indians, the rum-trade would be injured, which wasnbsp;carried on in these days to a most dreadful and pernicious extent,�andnbsp;partly from the erroneous and wicked notions of a set of fanatics, whonbsp;fancied that it was their duty to destroy all the natives wherever theynbsp;found them, as they said, � God had devoted them to destruction as henbsp;did the Canaanitish nations in the time of the Israelites.� Besidesnbsp;these causes, which operated powerfully to raise strong persecutionsnbsp;against the followers of the Gospel in North America, there were othersnbsp;arising from the necessity the different tribes were under, of adhering tonbsp;and taking up arms in favour of either the French or the English, asnbsp;long as war lasted between these two great nations, and in later timesnbsp;their siding with either Americans or English in the revolutionary war ;nbsp;and as the Brethren and their Indian congregations refused always tonbsp;take up arms at aU, or to declare themselves in favour of either side,nbsp;they were persecuted and hunted by all parties ; great and trying werenbsp;the persecutions they underwent, the history of which events strikinglynbsp;point out to view the faith and patience of the Moravian Brethren andnbsp;Sisters, the love and true Christian submission of the Indian converts,nbsp;and the glorious triumphs of the Gospel of peace. In some cases whennbsp;Indian chiefs were brought before English governors to condemn andnbsp;malign the missionaries, their hearts were turned, and they proceeded tonbsp;bestow on them that character they really deserved, and to call them theirnbsp;friends, beseeching the governors to protect them by every means innbsp;their power. The United Brethren were the first people who taughtnbsp;any of their tribes to leave off war, and plough and sow their ground,nbsp;to rear cattle and manufacture sugar from the sap of the maple ; and bynbsp;their unwearied endeavours the Gospel was first translated into one ofnbsp;their dialects, the Mohawk, and afterwards printed and published by thenbsp;Bible Society. The whole number of the baptized Indian converts fromnbsp;this first commencement of the Brethren�s labours to the year 1820, wasnbsp;computed to have been about 1450 souls ; but it has been difficult tonbsp;ascertain the number accurately, in consequence of their church registers having been burnt in 1782, when their settlement of Gnadenhuttennbsp;was destroyed, and sixty-two persons (including five of their most valuable missionaries) and thirty-four children were cruelly and inhumanlynbsp;murdered, by a party of American fanatics, opposed to the Englishnbsp;Government. The Indian congregation fled, those murdered were the

families of the missionaries. The account of this dreadful transaction is given in Brown�s History of Missions, Vol. I. p. 480.

In 1792, the Brethren and part of their congregations left their settlements south of Lake Erie, and proceeded to Upper Canada, where the British Government had assigned the 25,000 acres of land on thenbsp;River Thames, which falls into Lake St. Clair. Here they built a town,nbsp;and called it New Fairfield, and in a short time so improved the spot bynbsp;cultivating the ground and planting gardens, that the wilderness wasnbsp;literally changed into a fruit-field. Their stations at Oochgeelogy andnbsp;Springfield, in the Cherokee country, have been formed since thenbsp;United States drove the Indian tribes more towards the west, for thenbsp;purpose of settling in their lands.

In 1808 died, at the settlement of Goshen, David Zeisherger, aged eighty-eight years, upwards of sixty of which he had spent as a missionary among the Indians. To his latest breath he retained the same ardentnbsp;zeal for the conversion of the heathen, the same unaffected serenity ofnbsp;mind, the same unbounded confidence in God, which distinguished hisnbsp;earlier years.*

Since 1808, the United Brethren have made many converts, chiefly among the Cherokee tribe ; they have never been anxious to baptizenbsp;any, except those who gave evidence by their walk and conversation,nbsp;that they had been taught by the Spirit of God, and were possessed of anbsp;living faith ; otherwise, they might have increased their numbers bynbsp;many nominal Christians among the Indians of North America. Thenbsp;Brethren have here had full proof that the seed of the word, which theynbsp;often sowed in tears, had sprung up and brought forth much fruit, andnbsp;likewise had been spread far and wide, not only by the zeal of their converted Indian assistants, but also from the malice of their enemies, who,nbsp;in a manner, preached the Gospel to their savage countrymen, by drawing their attention to their Indian brethren, who were suffering patientlynbsp;for its sake. Most literally did these devoted men fulfil their Divinenbsp;Master�s injunctions : � When they persecute you in one city, flee yenbsp;to another for they were hunted by their enemies from station tonbsp;station, and often when they just established themselves in a new village

* We must not omit to mention the names of the two Brainerds, David and John, and Elliott, called the � Apostle of the Indians,� and others, who laboured in North America at the close of the eighteenth century. They were sent out by a society which hasnbsp;now no mission in these parts�� The Scotch Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge��which was given a royal charter by Queen Anne in 1732. Some account of thenbsp;labours of these pious and zealous men among the North American Indians may be seennbsp;in the little volume published by the Religious Tract Society, entitled, � Missionarynbsp;Records in North America.�

of their own rearing, and thought they should rest a little and prosecute their religious labours, their peaceful little settlement was burnt andnbsp;destroyed by the enemy, and their converts dispersed into the woods,nbsp;and they themselves driven on many hundred miles to seek for securitynbsp;and a place of rest for their weary feet. � Hungry and thirsty, theirnbsp;souls often fainted within them, but they cried unto the Lord in theirnbsp;trouble, and he delivered them out of their distress.� A remarkable answernbsp;was once given by an Indian to his Moravian teacher, when the enemynbsp;were firing upon them as they left their camp. The missionary wasnbsp;exhorting his people to stand by each other, and expect deliverance fromnbsp;God. � Very true,� said the Indian Christian; �only don�t you standnbsp;before me, but go behind, for I will be shot first.� By the many removals and flights of the Brethren, the Lord was spreading the knowledge of his truth by their means, as in the days of old, by the dispersion of the apostles.

The labours of the Wesleyan Missionary Society in North America, have been principally directed to the European settlers established innbsp;British America ; but they have also several stations among the Indiansnbsp;of the Ogibbeway and Ottawa tribes, on the borders of Canada, asnbsp;St. Clair, Alderville, Rice Lake, and Munsey Town,�the congregations at which are purely Indian,�and there are many Christian Indiansnbsp;under their care and spiritual guidance at Edmonton and Rockynbsp;Mountain House, and also at Norway House, all in the territories ofnbsp;the Hudson�s Bay Company. It is reckoned there are between seven andnbsp;eight hundred thousand full and accredited members of the Wesleyan persuasion in North America (including those in the States,) and about threenbsp;millions, white and coloured, including those under trial for membership.nbsp;There are now in the United States of America 3,106 ministers of thenbsp;Wesleyan Methodist persuasion, according to the American Almanacknbsp;and Repository of Useful Knowledge, which is generally reckoned anbsp;competent authority on this subject.* The same writer states that innbsp;Great Britain, Europe, and the British colonies (not including Northnbsp;America), the number of the Wesleyan Methodists is computed at fivenbsp;hundred thousand full and accredited members, and between two andnbsp;three millions of those under trial for membership.

In an assembly, composed of preachers of the Gospel, held at Leeds in the year 1769, the venerable Wesley, who presided on that occasion,nbsp;inquired, � Who will go to help our brethren in America ?� A collection was then made which amounted to �50, part of which served tonbsp;defray the expenses of two missionaries to the opposite shores of the

Atlantic, and thus may be said to have commenced the foreign operations of the Wesleyans, whose missions for many years were entrusted to the care of that zealous sen�ant of God, the Rev. Dr. Coke, assistednbsp;by a committee of finance and advice, consisting of all the ministers ofnbsp;the connexion resident in London ; but the General Wesleyan Missionary Society was not formed into one body till the year 1817, thoughnbsp;many of the missions bear a much earlier date of commencement (as innbsp;the West Indies). As a proof, among which might be brought forwardnbsp;to show what these missionaries have done, I subjoin the following extract from a speech of a North American Indian, made in England innbsp;1837 : � I understand, said Shawundais (John Sunday), the convertednbsp;chief of the Ojibbewas, that you are disappointed at my not havingnbsp;brought my Indian dress with me ; perhaps, if I had it on, you wouldnbsp;be afraid of me. I will tell you how I was dressed when I was a pagannbsp;Indian. My face was covered with red paint ; I stuck feathers in mynbsp;hair ; I wore a blanket and leggings ; I had silver ornaments on mynbsp;breast, a rifle on my shoulder, a tomahawk and scalping-knife in mynbsp;belt. Now I wiU tell you why I wear this no longer. You will findnbsp;the cause in the 2nd Corinthians, chap. v. ver. 17 : � Therefore, if anynbsp;man be in Christ, he is a new creature : old things are done away,nbsp;behold all things are become new.� When I became a Christian, feathers and paint done away ; my silver ornaments I gave to the missionnbsp;cause : scalping-knife, done away ; tomahawk, done away. That is mynbsp;tomahawk now !� said he (at the same time showing a copy of the Tennbsp;Commandments in the Ojibbewa language). � Blanket, done away.nbsp;� Behold,� � he exclaimed in a tone in which simplicity and dignity ofnbsp;character were combined, � � Behold, all things are become new.� �

At the close of the 18th century, various attempts to evangelize the Indians were made in or near the territories of the United States bynbsp;the different American churches ; viz., by the New York Missionarynbsp;Society, among the Tuscaroras and Senecas, who resided between thenbsp;State of Georgia and Niagara ; and by the American Board of Missions,nbsp;among the Cherokees, Choctaws, and Creeks, who live between the Statesnbsp;and the Mississippi River. This Society was formed in 1810, and is composed chiefly of members of the Congregational or Independent churches.nbsp;The Baptist Board of Foreign Missions was instituted in 1814; its firstnbsp;mission was to Rangoon in Burmah ; its second, among the Cherokee Indians, of North America. The Institution at Washington for thenbsp;instruction of missionaries, is under its direction. The United Foreignnbsp;Missionary Society is foraied chiefly of Presbyterians, and began its laboursnbsp;in 1817, among the Osages, Tuscaroras, and Senecas. It was united tonbsp;the New York Missionarv Society in 1820. The Methodist Missionaiy

Society was formed in 1819, and began its operations among the black and coloured population of the States, but afterwards turned its attention to the Indians, particularly to the Choctaws and Wyandots. Thenbsp;Episcopal Missionary Society was formed in 1820, and has labourednbsp;among the Oneidas and other tribes remaining within the States : thusnbsp;all the most considerable bodies of Christians in the Union have engagednbsp;in the missionary cause. We shall confine oui� remarks to the laboursnbsp;of the American Board of Missions, which is the most influential, andnbsp;we believe, the richest in funds, of all the American Societies ; and isnbsp;the only Society from the United States (except the Baptist) that sendsnbsp;its labourers into the other� quarters of the globe. The names theynbsp;have given to their Indian settlements are : Dwight, Fairfield, Parknbsp;Hill, Honey Creek, and Mount Zion, among the Cherokees ; the mostnbsp;southerly of the tribes on the Mississippi, Wheelock, Stockbridge,nbsp;Pine Ridge, Norwalk, Good Water, and Mount Pleasant, among thenbsp;Choctaws ; La Platte, among the Pawnees ; Wailatpu, Clear Water,nbsp;and Tshimakain among the Oregons ; Lac-qui-Parle, and Fort Snelling,nbsp;among the Sioux Indians ; La Pointai, Pokeguma and Red Lake, amongnbsp;the Ojibbewas ; Tuscarora, Seneca, Cattaraugus, and Alleghany amongnbsp;the New York Indians ; and a native teacher has been sent to thenbsp;Abenaquis, to the north of Upper Canada.

Of all these tribes the Cherokees are the most advanced in civilization. They are fond of working in iron, and many have been taught the blacksmith�s trade by the American missionaries. A Cherokeenbsp;newspaper, partly in English and partly in their own language, has beennbsp;published many years for their edification. In 1822, several portions ofnbsp;Genesis, the Psalms, Isaiah, and the Gospels, had been translated intonbsp;their language, also some hymns, and a Summary of Christian Doctrinenbsp;and Duty, drawn up by the missionaries. They describe the Cherokeenbsp;dialect as � artificial and complicated in its structure, evincing beyond anbsp;doubt that it was once spoken by a highly cultivated people.� The chiefnbsp;difficulty in learning to speak it consists in giving the nice shades ofnbsp;pronunciation, which are necessary to make oneself fully and freelynbsp;understood. The Americans found it a more difficult language tonbsp;acquire, than had been supposed. The missionaries have paid greatnbsp;attention to their Indian schools ; and they have found the females of thenbsp;Cherokee tribe remarkable for their obedience and aptness to learn. 1 nnbsp;a national council of this tribe, in 1823, it was resolved, that if parentsnbsp;placed their children in the mission schools, they should not be takennbsp;away till they had obtained a good education. The chiefs also passed anbsp;rule in order to encourage the learning of mechanical trades, that theynbsp;would give a set of tools to Indians who had learned a trade, and were

ready to set up for themselves. The Missionaries write, in 1821 : �We often think it would animate and encourage Christians, who have helpednbsp;us in this work, to see the many pleasant-looking families we pass andnbsp;visit in our rides,�to hehold their industry within doors and without,nbsp;their droves of cattle and fields of com, and above all to hear themnbsp;conversing on the subject of redeeming love, some of them giving evidence of a growth in grace, and a desire to learn the way to Eternalnbsp;life.� *

An Indian came once seventy miles to see the sabbath-school at Brainerd, and after the meeting he said (by an interpreter), � I havenbsp;heard many reports concerning your school, some for and some againstnbsp;it : I have now seen it with my own eyes, and am rejoiced at the sight.nbsp;If it please the Lord to take me away, I shall die in peace.� It maynbsp;be worthy of notice here that the American missionaries take greatnbsp;pains to teach the pupils of their schools to speak as well as to readnbsp;English, and, by a system of tickets and rewards, encourage the children always to speak to their schoolmates in English rather than innbsp;Cherokee. They learn to read the English Bible with remarkablenbsp;quickness. The Cherokees seem the only tribe of the North Americannbsp;Indians who had anything like a written character of their own, but thatnbsp;such was the case, was proved by the missionaries often finding Cherokee characters inscribed upon trees in the wilderness, underneath thenbsp;bark, which had been hewn away for that purpose. In 1824, a spellingbook in the Choctaw language was printed at Cincinnati in the state ofnbsp;Ohio, which the Indian children learnt to read in, with great facility.nbsp;The American missionaries have endeavoured to further the civilizationnbsp;of the Indians, by introducing into their settlements sawing-mills, flourmills, printing-presses, and other assistants to the arts of civilized life.nbsp;In less than eight years after the commencement of the missioii to thenbsp;Cherokees, the Board had 500 Indian children under its care, who werenbsp;regularly instructed in the Cherokee and English tongues, and in farming,nbsp;carpentering, and blacksmith�s work, and the girls in every departmentnbsp;of domestic female employment. The Board, in its Report for 1829,nbsp;gives an instance of several hopeful conversions among Indians, who,nbsp;removed many hundreds of miles from each other and from all religiousnbsp;instruction, yet attended to the duties of the Sabbath, and devotednbsp;themselves to the service of God in a remarkable manner ; and whonbsp;resolved not to make spirits an article of traffic or use, though, beforenbsp;they learnt the truth, they had considered it an indispensable part ofnbsp;their annual purchases.

The missionaries were able to commence preaching to the natives in the Choctaw language in the year 1829. Some tracts they publishednbsp;in Cherokee, in 1830, attracted great attention. The gospel of St.nbsp;Luke was translated into the Seneca language in 1830, and printed withnbsp;the English on the opposite page by the American Bible Society. Alsonbsp;the Sermon on the Mount, and about thirty hymns in the same languagenbsp;were pubhshed by the American Tract Society. The whole Bible seemsnbsp;never to have been translated into any of the North American Indiannbsp;dialects ; but the British and Foreign Bible Society has published smallnbsp;portions in the Delaware, the Mohawk, and the Ojibbewa languages.nbsp;The American Board of Missions printed the gospel of St. Matthewnbsp;and the epistles of St. John in the Choctaw language, in 1842, thenbsp;former at Boston, the latter at their Cherokee press at Park-hill station.nbsp;The edition consisted of 1000 copies of each.

Several portions of the scriptures, including more than half the New Testament, have been translated by the American missionaries into thenbsp;Sioux language, and their public service is conducted in the nativenbsp;tongue. At Lac-qui-parle station are about forty communicants. Itnbsp;seems that petty wars are still carried on between the Indian tribes,nbsp;especially in the country to the south of Lake Superior ; and drinkingnbsp;is their besetting sin. The United States government is mentioned bynbsp;the missionaries, in their Reports, as taking measures to prevent thenbsp;introduction of whiskey into the Indian country. The American missionaries had established schools in the Oregon country, and werenbsp;making progress in learning the Indian dialect, and in preparing portionsnbsp;of scripture and other books for the press ; but had met with muchnbsp;opposition from the unsettled life of the savage Indians of the Oregonnbsp;and Nez Percez tribes. The Abenaquis tribe live to the north of thenbsp;St. Lawrence in Lower Canada ; at the American station of St. Francis,nbsp;is an Indian teacher and his wife, who are labouring steadily amongnbsp;their countrymen. The Committee speak of this little church as a lightnbsp;in the midst of great darkness ; and that many of the Indians havenbsp;been here reclaimed from intemperance, idleness, and vice.

We shall confine our remarks to those states of South America which were formerly under the controul of Spain, but, since 1825, have become independent republics. These states, according to Humboldt,nbsp;contain nearly sixteen millions of inhabitants, of whom by far the greaternbsp;proportion are Roman Catholics, either true or nominal ;�by the latternbsp;we mean those Indians, half-castes, or negro slaves, who have beennbsp;baptized into the Church of Rome, but have no religion at all, beyondnbsp;their profession by baptism, of which there ai�e great numbers in Southnbsp;America. When the Spanish states threw olF the yoke, and becamenbsp;independent of the mother-country, they gained much in civil freedom,nbsp;but nothing in religious liberty ; for the Pope at this time sent hisnbsp;emissaries, and opened an intercourse with them to incline them to hisnbsp;interest. On the other hand, the state of Buenos Ayres granted the freenbsp;exercise of their religion to all British and American Protestants withinnbsp;its limits ; and the state of Colombia soon followed its example, bynbsp;granting entire security of conscience to the citizens of the United Statesnbsp;of North America. In the capital of Colombia, model-schools for bothnbsp;boys and girls, were established by the government ; there were alsonbsp;two in Lima, the capital of Peru ; and the British and Foreign Schoolnbsp;Society has rendered them some assistance.

The British and Foreign Bible Society have made several attempts to introduce the Scriptures into the Spanish, and now into the independent,nbsp;states. Mr. Thompson their agent, has performed many journeys fornbsp;this purpose in different parts of South America, and in some places hasnbsp;met with some success ; and the Rev. Mr. Armstrong, who was also atnbsp;one time their agent at Buenos Ayres, is now acting as chaplain to thenbsp;English residents in that city. In 1825, it was computed by the American missionary at Buenos Ayres, that among a population of 80,000 souls,nbsp;there were not above 500 complete Spanish Bibles, and from 1500 tonbsp;2000 Testaments. A society was formed in England, some years beforenbsp;the declaration of independance, by the South American states, called thenbsp;Spanish Translation Society, which has been the means of supplyingnbsp;many religious books and tracts among the Roman Catholics of the vastnbsp;continent of South America. The Religious Tract Society of Englandnbsp;has also greatly assisted this benevolent object. In 1823, the Ame-

rican Board of Missions sent two missionaries, Messrs. Parvin and Brigham, to Buenos Ayres ; and they had two, either here or at Montenbsp;Video, and at Rio Janeiro, in 1833, and they opened both Sunday andnbsp;Day-schools in these cities.*

Great Britain possesses important trading factories in all the countries of South America; in Brazil, Buenos Ayres, Chili, Peru, Colombia,nbsp;Guatimala, and Mexico, and in all these republics her Britannic Majesty has consuls or residents. In 1826, there was not any Protestantnbsp;English clergyman in Mexico. In Guatimala, the English settlers havenbsp;a chaplain at Honduras, and there are missionaries there. In the province of Buenos Ayres there are perhaps as many as 5000 English residing for purposes of trade and commerce, and that is the only place itnbsp;seems where divine service is regularly performed in English, and according to the Protestant form of worship. In 1833, the British andnbsp;Foreign Bible Society printed the gospel of St. Luke in the Mexicannbsp;language, for the use of the Aborigines, � Notwithstanding numerousnbsp;prohibitory edicts of the Spanish priests, no one book has ever beennbsp;circulated to such an extent in Mexico, as the Holy Scriptures. Thenbsp;proportion of Scriptures to other books is as eight to one.� At Rionbsp;Janeiro and at Buenos Ayres several American missionaries, from thenbsp;Methodists� Society in the States, settled in 1836 ; and, in 1840, werenbsp;making some impression on the minds of their hearers, which hadnbsp;drawn forth considerable opposition against their labours. The Biblenbsp;Society, in 1840, state there is a general and eager thirst after religiousnbsp;instruction throughout the country, among the rising generation ; butnbsp;that aU attempts to benefit them, or circulate the word of God is frustrated by ecclesiastical influence.f

Labrador.�The most easterly part of North America claimed by Great Britain is Labrador, which stretches along the sea for 700 miles, and isnbsp;included between the Atlantic Ocean, and the spacious inland sea callednbsp;Hudson�s Bay. It has all the characteristics of an arctic or polar region,nbsp;and is filled with small lakes and extensive forests of fir, pine, and birch.nbsp;The coast is diversified with innumerable islands, tenanted only bynbsp;water-fowl. There are a number of fishing stations on the coast resortednbsp;to during the summer by the Esquimaux and others engaged in thenbsp;fisheries, while in winter only a few men are left to take care of thenbsp;buildings and machinery. The capture of cod and salmon is very largenbsp;on the southern parts of the coast, but the exports are included in thenbsp;trade of Newfoundland, to which government Labrador belongs.* Thisnbsp;vast sterile region is very litttle known,�the prevailing features seemnbsp;to be rocks, swamps, and mountains. Nullatarlok Bay in latitude 59nbsp;is surrounded by high mountains, which are covered with moss, alder,nbsp;birch, and various shrubs and plants ; and during the month of July thenbsp;Vallies are grassy and ornamented with a variety of flowers. At Nach-vak Bay the sea is clear of ice by the middle of July, and the mountains afford a most magnificent prospect. The mouth of the Koksoaknbsp;river in latitude 58 is distant about 650 miles from the missionary station at Okkak, and is about ns broad as the Thames at Gravesend.nbsp;Some distance up the River is a bay, surrounded on all sides by gentlynbsp;rising wooded ground. On each side the river, for about a mile inland,nbsp;the ground slopes up and is well watered by rivulets descending from

the hills, upon which are found various European plants and shrubs, as junipers, currants, amp;c. ; there are also trees, and abundance of grass.nbsp;It is said that no wood grows in Labrador farther west than Okkak.nbsp;North of Cape Charles the land falls, and the shore changes its character, becoming shoal and running oif in flats, whereas to the southwardnbsp;the clifis are bold and abrupt, chiefly composed of old red sandstone,nbsp;but inland rocks of mica slate predominate. In some places, crystals ofnbsp;garnet are very abundant in this rock. The highest mountains on thenbsp;Labrador coast are 1484 feet above the sea, and covered nearly to thenbsp;top with wood, chiefly pine-trees, and a profusion of plants bearingnbsp;delicate berries grow some distance inland at the head of its numerous bays. The country seems not incapable of cultivation,* but itsnbsp;chief wealth is derived from the sea, its deep bays affording safe harbours and productive fishing stations. To the south also, the fur-tradenbsp;gives the natives a profitable winter occupation. There is a deficiencynbsp;of springs to the north, but the rains and melted snows accumulatenbsp;in small lakes which well supply their place. Timber in many partsnbsp;is almost entirely wanting on the north-west shores,�a substitute fornbsp;which is found in the bones of whales and other large sea-animals, asnbsp;well as the pieces of drift wood, wafted as is supposed, from Norwaynbsp;and Lapland. Seals are caught on this coast in great abundance. For-teau Bay is the most considerable of the fishing settlements. One sidenbsp;is occupied during the seal season by the English, the other by Guernseymen ; the former remain through the winter, but the latter quit thenbsp;coast in autumn. A few hamlets are found in Chateau Bay, the bounding cape of which is composed of magnificent ranges of basaltic columns,nbsp;resembhng a great natural castle. To the north-west. Sandwich Baynbsp;(where are the huts of eight or nine families) terminates the range ofnbsp;British settlements on this coast. The Moravian missionary stationsnbsp;are in the remotest and most desolate part of Labrador, beyond thenbsp;limits of the fishing settlements.!

Labrador enjoys a happy exemption from the dense fogs which oppress the Newfoundland shores. On the approach of summer the islands ofnbsp;ice coming from the north are at once terrific and dangerous. The Labrador winter is extremely severe, the thermometer often faUing thirtynbsp;degrees below the freezing point, and although the houses of the missionaries are heated by large cast-iron stoves, yet the windows and walls arcnbsp;all the winter covered with ice, and the bed-clothes freeze to the walls :nbsp;rum is frozen in the air as rapidly as water, and rectified spirits soon

* Indeed its very namt has this signification. See � Moravians and Labrador,� published by Oliphant, 1835, p. 10,

become thick like oil. From December to June the sea is so completely frozen over that no open water is to be seen. Some missionaries oncenbsp;ventured in the month of February to visit some Esquimaux forty milesnbsp;distant, and although wrapped in furs they were nearly destroyed by thenbsp;coldness of the climate ; their eyelids froze together in such a mannernbsp;that they were continually obliged to pull them asunder, and by constantnbsp;rubbing prevent their closing ; one of them had his hands frozen andnbsp;swollen like bladders. The few summer months on this coast are, on thenbsp;contrary, extremely hot,�the thermometer rising to 86 degrees of Fahrenheit, when swarms of mosquitoes infect the air ; the climate is notnbsp;however at all unhealthy.* Although the coasts of Labrador lie somenbsp;degree farther south than those of Greenland, yet the cold here is farnbsp;more severe than in that country, chiefly from the height of its mountains, or the influence of the perpetual fogs that cover the Newfoundlandnbsp;seas ; or probably the immense quantity of drift ice that accumulates onnbsp;the eastern shores may have some effect upon the climate. The summer,nbsp;on the other hand, during the short time it lasts, is proportionablynbsp;warmer than in Greenland ; vegetation then proceeds with uncommonnbsp;rapidity, the shrubs and plants expand as if by enchantment, and thenbsp;country assumes the luxuriance and beauty of a European summer.

The pine and larch of Labrador are of sufficient size to be used in building or to be sawn into boards ; there are also willow, aspen,nbsp;birch, and alder in considerable quantities. The principal land animalnbsp;is the beautiful and useful rein-deer, which are found in large herds,nbsp;and are hunted for their flesh and their valuable warm fur ; but theynbsp;have not been domesticated by the Labrador Esquimaux. Arcticnbsp;foxes abound, and hares are met with occasionally. The black bearnbsp;is frequently killed, and their flesh is much relished by the natives.nbsp;But the most formidable of this tribe found in these regions is thenbsp;great white polar bear, whose ferocity and courage render him an object of terror even to the well-armed European. The Esquimaux dognbsp;is the most useful animal to the Esquimaux of Labrador ; he bears anbsp;strong resemblance to the wolf, and is as large as the Newfoundlandnbsp;dog, with a thick hairy coat peculiarly adapted to the climate. As anbsp;hunter he can trace the seal or the rein-deer at a considerable distance,nbsp;and he does not dread when in a pack to attack even the white bearnbsp;itself. But his chief value consists in his fitness for drawing the sledgenbsp;of the natives, to which he is carefully trained from infancy, and becomes remarkably submissive ; their strength and speed is astonishing,nbsp;especially as they are often subjected to hunger. Nine dog.s have been

known to draw a weight of 1600 pounds, the distance of a mile in ten minutes. Whales are scarce on the Labrador coast, but seals are verynbsp;abundant. Salmon and salmon-trout are caught in every creek andnbsp;rivulet ; they remain in the rivers and fresh water lakes during thenbsp;winter, but return to the sea in the spring. The Esquimaux catch themnbsp;in winter under the ice by spearing them. Sea-fowls of the duck andnbsp;goose species frequent the shores of Labrador, and afford to the nativesnbsp;food, warmth, and materials for trade. The American wild pheasant isnbsp;the only land bird mentioned by the missionaries, and this affords annbsp;agreeable article of food at a time when other resources fail.

Greenland.�This large promontory or peninsula was probably named from the fallacious appearance of some small favoured spots at the firstnbsp;moment of its discovery. It has been described as two separate tractsnbsp;of sea-coast ; for the interior has never yet been penetrated. Thenbsp;eastern coast has no deep bays, as the western has, and is therefore notnbsp;so habitable.* The western coast, from the most southernly point tonbsp;the 7 3rd degree of latitude, has been claimed and settled by Denmark ;nbsp;the several Danish settlements on the coast having been all establishednbsp;between the years 1721 and 1796.1' They are, at the best, only smallnbsp;fishing villages. The appearance of this coast from the sea is striking,nbsp;and at times dazzling, grand, and sublime, hut by no means inviting ;nbsp;the high and barren rocks, covered with constant ice and snow, rearnbsp;their high and inaccessible heads among the desolate waste of increasingnbsp;glaciers ; large blocks of solid ice, called ice-bergs, of great height andnbsp;fantastic shapes, continually block up the bays and inlets, till the eastnbsp;wind drives them out to sea into warmer latitudes, where they arenbsp;melted by the rays of the sun. Of trees there are none,�a few stuntednbsp;shrubs, with a scanty portion of heath and grass, are the only traces ofnbsp;verdure, and these only make their appearance during the two or threenbsp;short and uncertain summer months. In summer there is no night ;nbsp;for above the 66th degree of latitude the sun never sets during thenbsp;longest days. During the night it does not shine with lustre, butnbsp;appears rather like a bright moon. The sun is never seen above thenbsp;horizon from November to January ; but the moon, the stars, and thenbsp;brilliant �northern lights� supply its absence.

The westerly winds and the currents convey to the barren shores of Greenland great quantities of drift-wood, from Siberia and the coastsnbsp;of America, without which the Greenlanders could neither roof their

* See Murray�s � Encyclopedia of Geography,� p. 1539. t Sec Williams�s � Missionary Gazetteer.�

houses, erect their tents, build their boats, or shaft their arrows. Among the few plants to be found are some very useful to the Greenlander, asnbsp;sorrel, angelica, snake-weed, dandelion, lovage, which is a species ofnbsp;celery, orpine, or live-long, and the useful scurvy-grass ; of aU thesenbsp;the people make use of the roots or the leaves, and sometimes of both.nbsp;There are two species of grass, and an abundance of mosses, which thenbsp;Greenlanders make use of in a variety of ways, some for tinder, andnbsp;wicks for their lamps, and others for food, and one they share with thenbsp;rein-deer. Europeans have attempted to sow oats, but they seldomnbsp;advanced so far as to come into ear. In their gardens the inhabitantsnbsp;have managed to rear salad, cole, radishes, and a few very small turnips.nbsp;The shrubs bear delicious berries, which serve as food to the Greenlanders, as the whirtie, the crow, and the cranberry. But the bottomnbsp;of the sea is more supplied with plants than the land, and when torn upnbsp;by the tempest and thrown on the shore, these afford, in time of scarcity�if any time in Greenland can be called a time of plenty�a partialnbsp;supply. The Greenlanders hunt the rein-deer for its flesh, as in Labrador, and use its skin for their dresses, its sinews for thread, and itsnbsp;horns for various instruments and utensils. The other animals they usenbsp;for food are the seal, the white bear, the hare, and the grey fox. Butnbsp;their chief food is drawn from the sea, either in the shape of fish ornbsp;water-fowl, which everywhere abound ; and their eggs, which are verynbsp;large, are a nutritious article of food. The eider-duck supplies themnbsp;with beds, and with a valuable article of trade. By a remarkable interposition of Providence, the rein-deer, the hares, the eider-ducks, andnbsp;many other animals in this most severe climate, are furnished with a thicknbsp;coat of fat between the skin and the flesh as winter comes on. The eiderfowl plucks the fine soft down off her breast to make her nest ; and ifnbsp;this be taken after she has lain her eggs, the hen will lay a second andnbsp;a third time, four eggs each time, and always plucks fresh down from hernbsp;breast. Tliese birds brave the severest winter of the arctic regions. Anbsp;great variety of water-birds frequent these coasts, most of them livingnbsp;on the small fish which abound in these seas. The penguin and thenbsp;cormorant are of this number. The seal is pre-eminently the mostnbsp;useful animal which a wise and gracious Providence has given to thenbsp;Greenlander ; indeed without these amphibious creatures it is hardlynbsp;possible to see how they would exist. Their flesh supplies their mostnbsp;palatable food ; the oil their lamps and fires ; of the internal membranesnbsp;they make windows, curtains for their tents, and shirts : but the mostnbsp;indispensable article produced by the seal is the skin, of which thenbsp;Greenlanders cover their huts and their boats, out of which they cutnbsp;their straps and thongs for their sledges, and from which they procure

all their strong outer clothing, their boots, stockings, caps, and gloves. Next to the seal in importance is the whale, whose blubber, or fat, is sonbsp;useful to the Greenlander, and which is so important an article of commerce. The herring frequents their shores in large shoals.

This part of our subject has been already mentioned with regard to Greenland in the previous chapter ; excepting that we may notice herenbsp;that the superintendence of the trade and the administration of the law�snbsp;in this colony is vested by the King of Denmark in two governors, ornbsp;inspectors, one of whom resides at Godthank in the south, and the othernbsp;in Disco Bay in the north. Their power is very extensive, but is restricted to the Danish colonies only ; the Greenlanders being withoutnbsp;laws, except such individuals among them as are in the pay of the Danish government. With regard to the arts of hfe, it is necessary tonbsp;leave the natives to the occupations suitable to the peculiarity of thenbsp;region,�as seal-catching, rein-deer and bear-hunting, and the chase ofnbsp;birds,�as these form the only means of clothing or food to the people.

Regarding the Labrador coast, which is a part of the British dominions of North America, the same remarks allude to it as have been mentioned when touching on Newfoundland ; as the chief use it is of tonbsp;England arises from its cod and whale fisheries. No English resort tonbsp;those parts of Labrador where the missionaries have taken up theirnbsp;residence.

each other essentially in their habits or customs, and therefore the same observations will apply to the inhabitants of both countries.

highest compliment was, � He begins to be a Greenlander.� They are patient and unobtrusive ; but if too far encroached upon, they becomenbsp;furious and desperate. They do not immediately resent an injury, butnbsp;sullenly wait an opportunity for revenging themselves. Like many uncivilized nations, they are indolent and active by turns ; if their employment pleases them they will work without intermission ; at other timesnbsp;they wiU sleep incessantly night and day. Among those who are heathens, the putting to death the aged or useless members of a family,nbsp;or destitute children, is considered no crime.

The dress of the Esquimaux is well adapted to the rigour of the climate. Thefr inner shirt is made of the skins of birds, with the feathers worn next to them ; over this another garment, or waistcoat, made ofnbsp;rein-deer or other fur ; their outer garments reach to the knees, andnbsp;are closely fitted round the neck, with a hood to draw over the head innbsp;cold weather, and are made of seal�s-skin. The men�s are plain at thenbsp;bottom, but the women�s are longer, and terminate in two flaps, a shortnbsp;one before and a long one behind, and the skins of which their clothesnbsp;are made are the showiest and prettiest of their kinds. The mothers wearnbsp;a kind of wide bag on their back to hold their children. The richer Greenlanders sometimes now substitute woollen stockings and caps for thosenbsp;of seal�s-skin, and esteem them luxuries. When they travel, they put anbsp;great-coat over their other garments, made of black, smooth seal�s-skin,nbsp;which keeps out the water. Their holiday-dresses are kept with greatnbsp;care, and the seams ornamented with strips of leather, which they contrive either to keep white or dye of a red colour.

The Esquimaux live in houses in winter, and in tents in summer. Tlie Greenlander�s houses are made of large rough stones, and the walls arenbsp;about six feet thick, with layers of earth and sod between the stones ;nbsp;they are generally twelve or eighteen feet in length, and ten or twelve innbsp;breadth, and are entered by a low vaulted passage, in the centre sometimes fifteen feet long, through which it is necessary to creep on allnbsp;fours ; this passage excludes the cold and lets out the heated air. Onnbsp;each side the entrance are two windows made of thin transparent skin,nbsp;and the walls and roofs are lined with old half-worn tent and boatnbsp;coverings. Along the whole length of the inside of the dwelling is anbsp;raised bench about a foot high, covered with skins ; and as a numbernbsp;of families live together in one house, it is divided by partitions ofnbsp;skins, every several apartment being occupied by a family. By eachnbsp;partition stands a lamp made of steatite or soap-stone, filled withnbsp;whale or seal oil, and a vrick of moss, which burns so brightly, that thenbsp;place is both sufficiently lighted and heated ; and over their lamps theynbsp;suspend a kettle of the same material, in which all their food is dressed :

above it also is a rack for drying their clothes on. Their houses at the beginning of winter are tolerably comfortable, but the heaps of bonesnbsp;and fragments of skins, with the preparation necessary for tanning andnbsp;preparing their seals� skins, render the interior of a Greenlander�s housenbsp;(as the winter advances) extremely revolting to a European. Tlie converted natives, however, are now taught habits of cleanliness, whichnbsp;alone would mark the diflerence between them and their countrymen.nbsp;Their summer tents are of a size suitable to the number of its inmates,nbsp;and every family has a separate tent. They are made of poles fastenednbsp;into a stone foundation and covered with double seal-skins, and oftennbsp;lined with a tapestry of rein-deer skins ; the door, which serves also fornbsp;a window, is made of transparent skin, and is ornamented with needlework and fringed with blue or red cloth. The Esquimaux of Labradornbsp;build their winter-houses of solid blocks of frozen snow, of immensenbsp;size and thickness, which they cut out with their long thin knives, andnbsp;pile one upon another, gradually narrowing them as they reach the top,nbsp;in a sort of dome shape.

The fashion of the Greenlander�s boat is peculiarly his own, and better adapted for their seas than those of any other nation. Theirnbsp;large family boat, or umiak, which is managed by the women, and usednbsp;to transport the whole family, with their tents and baggage, from onenbsp;place to another, is four or five feet wide and from twenty to thirtynbsp;feet long. It is flat-bottomed, and is made of a skeleton of wood, knitnbsp;together with leather thongs, and covered with the strongest seal-skin.nbsp;It is not easily upset, and lives in the roughest sea. It must undergonbsp;daily repair, and is new coated with a thick rancid oil every evening tonbsp;preserve its seams. The Greenlander uses a small canoe or kayak,nbsp;which is a master-piece of ingenuity and utility ; for by it he is renderednbsp;almost amphibious himself, and able to cope with the inhabitants of thenbsp;ocean on their own element. It is about 16 feet long, shaped like anbsp;weaver�s shuttle, is scarcely a foot and a half broad, and not a foot innbsp;depth. It is closed all over, with only a round hole for the man in thenbsp;centre. Into this the Greenlander slips, and lacing his sea-coat to thenbsp;bone or wooden rim of the hole, and buttoning it about his face andnbsp;arms with bone buttons, both he and his vessel are water-proof. Tlieynbsp;are taught from their infancy to manage the kayak, to recover theirnbsp;balance if upset, and guide their little skiff in every possible danger,�nbsp;an art which Europeans can never attain, and which the Greenlandersnbsp;of late are not very successful in attempting to learn.

Respecting the moral character of the Labrador Esquimaux, it was found by the Moravians that it differed in some respects from that of thenbsp;Greenlanders, who had had but little intercourse with Europeans until

these missionaries first went among them. The Esquimaux of the Labrador coast had been long acquainted with European traders, and had lost many of the original features of savage life, without gaining any better innbsp;their place. These men had corrupted their morals, and had taughtnbsp;them wants which they could not supply themselves with, but by stealing.nbsp;But in the more northerly parts of Labrador, where they had come butnbsp;little into contact with misleading white men, they found them comparatively mild and honest. The Greenlanders� chief employment is huntingnbsp;and fishing. The whole domestic operations are left to the women, whonbsp;cook, sow, prepare the skins, cover the boats and tents, and even buildnbsp;the houses, while men and boys look on with the utmost indifference atnbsp;their severest toils. Polygamy is practised among the heathen, but notnbsp;generally. They bury their dead in a sitting posture, with their bestnbsp;clothes on, and the graves are-made of stone. The population is toonbsp;thinly scattered to admit of any regular government,�each follows hisnbsp;own inclination,�and the punishment of crimes and offences is left tonbsp;private revenge, which, as in all savage nations, is cruel, and often hereditary. In their heathen state, they treated the fatherless and the widownbsp;with little pity or regard. They are fond of singing ; and their elegiacnbsp;poetry, which they recite upon occasions, shows much harmony, warmth,nbsp;and pathos of mind. They had no knowledge whatever of letters beforenbsp;the missionaries first visited them. Their language is musical, but verynbsp;artificial, and extremely difficult for foreigners to acquire, They countnbsp;by their fingers and toes,�five is a hand, ten two hands, amp;c. ; twenty is anbsp;man, one hundred is five men, and all beyond goes with the Greenlandernbsp;under the term innumerable ; but the Moravians have greatly instructednbsp;them and improved their stock of information.*

Matthew Stach, one of the first Moravian missionaries who sailed to Greenland in 1733, thus describes the natives in his journal : � Whatnbsp;we sought for in this country we have found ; that is heathens, whonbsp;know not God ; who care for nothing but catching seals, fish, and reindeer, and for that purpose are always moving about, living sometimesnbsp;on the mainland, sometimes on one island and sometimes on another.�nbsp;It seems by the first conversation the missionaries held with the nativesnbsp;of Greenland, that they were aware of the immortality of the soul :nbsp;some said it would go above after death, and others�below�. Whennbsp;asked who made the world, they replied, � We don�t know, but it must

have been some very rich man.� They seemed to divide all their fellow-creatures into two sets,�kublmaet, or foreigners, who in their estimation were bad men ; and karalit, which meant good men ; and they always said, � We are good karalit.� When the Labrador Esquimauxnbsp;were told that the Greenlanders had believed on Jesus Christ, and thatnbsp;he had shed his blood to take away their sins, they said, � They mustnbsp;be very wicked men, then ! As for us, we are the good Karalits.� Theynbsp;believed in a Good Spirit, who they called Torngark (or Torngarsuk) ;nbsp;and in an Evil Spirit, who they represented as a female (without anbsp;name), who lived under the sea ; and who occasioned the dearth of seals,nbsp;and other untoward accidents. Their angekoks, or priests, were sorcerers, who pretended to hold intercourse with this imaginary deity ;nbsp;and one of the most lucrative parts of their employment, was to travelnbsp;to her habitation, and destroy her spell in times of scarcity. Theirnbsp;reputation also partly arose from their supposed skill in curing diseases ;nbsp;to effect which they had recourse to ventriloquism, and certain jugglingnbsp;tricks and superstitious ceremonies : their whole art consisting in deceiving the ignorant and superstitious. Altogether their religion wasnbsp;most confused, dark, and hopeless ; and several instances of their ridiculous incantations are given in the histories that have been publishednbsp;of missionary labours among them. Their notions of futurity werenbsp;gross and sensual ; the highest enjoyment they could conceive of thenbsp;soul after death, being made to consist in successful hunting and gluttony. Indeed these were their most favourite employments during theirnbsp;present existence.

� These things I speak in the mirld, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through theirnbsp;word.��John xvii. 13, 20,

� Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of theIjord,forasmuehasyekHO�v that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.��nbsp;1 Cor. XV. 58.

Greenland.�In the year 1708, Mr. Hans Egede, a Danish clergyman, having heard of the churches and ministers established on the coast ofnbsp;Greenland in the eleventh century, by the early Norwegian Christians,nbsp;was impressed by a strong desire to visit Greenland ; and though deterrednbsp;and hindered by all to whom he applied for assistance and encouragement,nbsp;yet he never gave up his point, and after a patient struggle of no less thannbsp;thirteen years, he obtained help from the King of Denmark to establish

a colony for trade on the shores of Greenland ; and proceeded there himself with a view of instructing, and, if it might be, of Christianizing, thenbsp;heathens of that country. This took place in 1721. The trading colonynbsp;did not answer very well at first, and numerous ditficulties were continually springing up. The settlers got tired of these inclement shores,nbsp;and all, save Mr. Egede, were for giving up the undertaking. He persevered in acquiring the Greenlandish language, and even succeeded sonbsp;far as to translate various portions of the Scriptures into this tongue.nbsp;He attempted to instruct the people, but without much success, however,nbsp;as they were unwilling to attend, and slow to understand ; and he adoptednbsp;the unwise plan of threatening them, which only estranged them thenbsp;farther, and made them more averse to listen. He sufiered most dreadfully from the effects of famine, during the year 1722 ; and all left him butnbsp;his faithful wife, who felt sure the Lord would send them deliverance innbsp;their time of need : and so it proved ; for a ship unexpectedly arrived atnbsp;last with supplies from Denmark, and with news from the king, that henbsp;intended to prosecute the trade and support the mission.

The year 1733 is memorable in the annals of Greenland history for two events ; the hreaking out of the small-pox, which carried off nearlynbsp;2000 of the population, and the arrival of the Moravian missionaries,nbsp;Christian David and the two brothers Stach, who had left the lately-formed settlement of Herrnhut, in Upper Lusatia, and set out, first fornbsp;Copenhagen, and then for Greenland, trusting alone in God for help andnbsp;counsel. The United Brethren�s congregation only amounted at this timenbsp;to six hundred persons, most of whom were themselves poor despisednbsp;exiles. The three brethren were kindly received by Mr. Egede, whonbsp;assisted them by every means in his power ; but they were sorely triednbsp;for the first few years after their arrival on these inclement shores,nbsp;especially by the great scarcity of food, their difficulty in procuring it,nbsp;and the unkind conduct of the natives, who refused to supply them,nbsp;though they had plenty themselves.

In 1735 died Mrs. Egede ; � a woman,� observes Mr. Brown, in his History of Missions, � who well deserves an honourable place amongnbsp;those women who have done virtuously.� She had endured with singular patience and cheerfulness the many trials she had been called tonbsp;undergo, on the cold inhospitable shores of Greenland, and often wasnbsp;found supporting and comforting her husbsmd, when disheartened andnbsp;dejected by the difficulties of their situation. In 1736 Mr. Egede leftnbsp;Greenland. After his return, the mission was prosecuted by the Danishnbsp;government with vigour, probably owing to his representations in itsnbsp;behalf, and a college was established for the education of Danish missionaries to the colonv.

In 1823, there were five churches on the coast, at the sixteen settlements established by the Danish trading-company. But, to return to the Brethren :�They made but little progress in converting the heathen,nbsp;and experienced many great and trying difficulties till the year 1738,nbsp;when the memorable conversion of Kayarnak took place. The Brethrennbsp;were earnestly engaged in translating the gospels ; and one night, whilenbsp;reading the portion that describes the Saviour�s agony in the garden ofnbsp;Gethsemane, and his subsequent death upon the cross, Kayarnak steppednbsp;up to the table, and asked them to read it over again, as he alsonbsp;wished to be saved. The missionaries had never heard such words before from any Greenlander ; for they had invariably derided and scoffednbsp;at all their attempts to impress them with Divine truth. In 1740, a remarkable change took place in the Brethren�s mode of instructing thenbsp;Greenlanders, which was accompanied by very striking and happynbsp;effects. Hitherto they had only spoken to them of the existence ofnbsp;God, the creation of the world, and the fall of man. They now adoptednbsp;a different plan, and directed the attention of the savages, in the firstnbsp;instance, to Jesus Christ, to his life, his sufferings, and death, for fallennbsp;guilty man : and in discoursing of these, their own hearts becamenbsp;warmed and animated, and produced a corresponding good effect uponnbsp;their hearers. � The word now illuminated their darkened understandings, melted their stubborn hearts, and kindled in their cold icynbsp;breasts the flame of spiritual life,� * And now the missionaries began,nbsp;after six years� patient toil and suffering, to behold some little fruit ofnbsp;their labours. Kayarnak left them for a season, and they feared he wouldnbsp;relapse into heathenism ; therefore great was their joy to see him, afternbsp;a year�s absence, returning with his wife and family, whom he ardentlynbsp;desired to place under the missionaries� instruction. He said he hadnbsp;felt, while absent from them, how much they loved him and his countrymen. Several other Greenland families now began to feel a concernnbsp;for their immortal souls, and soon suffered derision and insults fromnbsp;their heathen neighbours.

It is remarkable that the first lesson the missionaries had to teach their Greenland converts was humility ; for they began to set themselves up as teachers, and entertained very high ideas of their ownnbsp;acquirements ; though these were the people that, a little while before,nbsp;the Danish and Moravian Brethren had found so dull, sleepy, and stupid,nbsp;that they could not make them understand or listen to the simplestnbsp;instructions.

upon the rest of the natives ; for hitherto they had looked upon the missionaries as quite different beings from themselves, and used to say,nbsp;� Religion is your profession ; you have time and ability to think ofnbsp;these things ; but it is not so with us.� But now they beheld theirnbsp;own countrymen, who originally were no wiser or better than themselves, transformed by the happy influence of the gospel, and exhibitingnbsp;its fruits in their lives ; and they became deeply impressed with a sensenbsp;of their need of salvation. The prayers of the converts particularlynbsp;astonished them ; they thought their people must have learnt the wordsnbsp;by heart, and begged of the missionaries to teach them also ; but theynbsp;informed them that they must first feel in their hearts the need of whatnbsp;they prayed for, and then a sense of their own necessities would teachnbsp;them (as it had their countrymen) how to express themselves in prayer.nbsp;The conversations of the young Greenlanders were now of great use tonbsp;the missionaries, in pursuing their arduous work of translation ; fornbsp;hitherto they had not been able to learn from them any words in theirnbsp;language which expressed spiritual things ; for the Brethren had refrained from speaking to them on religious matters, lest any false notions on the subject might be communicated to their minds. Theirnbsp;time had chiefly been employed in learning the native language, whichnbsp;they had found a very difficult and laborious undertaking : and thesenbsp;patient and hard-working Moravians had, on their first arrival in Greenland, to sit down and learn Danish, before they could understand the instructions which Mr. Egede was willing to give them in the Greenlandnbsp;tongue, or could read the grammar and dictionary he had prepared fornbsp;himself. And when we consider that these missionaries were poor, unlearned labourers, who had never in their fives seen a grammar of anynbsp;kind, we shall be able the better to value their labours, and understandnbsp;their difficulties.

In 1742, about thirty Greenlanders took up their winter-quarters around the dwellings of the missionaries, and their prospects brightenednbsp;daily. From this period the whole Greenland nation displayed a newnbsp;and improved temper towards foreigners, whom before they had hated,nbsp;dreaded, or despised. Many now came to beg the Brethren�s forgiveness, for having previously ill-treated them, and many gave up theirnbsp;hunting and fishing, to listen for a time to their teachers ; and whennbsp;they wandered to distant parts of the coast, they either soon returned,nbsp;or found refuge in the Danish congregations, and were there admittednbsp;into the Christian church. In 1750, the number of Greenlanders whonbsp;had come to reside near the Brethren was nearly three hundred. Innbsp;17.52, occurred one of the most dreadful winters in Greenland that wasnbsp;ever known ; and in this, and several following years, the inhabitants?

suffered all the horrors of famine, in consequence of the extreme severity of the weather. The coast was so blocked up with the ice, that it wasnbsp;impossible for the people to go in quest of food, and great were thenbsp;sufferings of both the natives and the missionaries in consequence. Innbsp;1754, an epidemic raged among the natives. These calamities werenbsp;blessed to the Christian or inquiring Greenlanders : and the power ofnbsp;Christianity was often seen, in warming the hard hearts of these savagenbsp;heathens, and prompting them to acts of kindness to their sufferingnbsp;fellow-creatures, which they would have never have thought of performing previous to the introduction of the gospel among them.

It was customary with the Brethren to read to their Greenland converts any accounts they received from the Moravian congregations in Europe, and especially the notices they obtained of missions to the heathen. Nothing of this kind ever touched them so sensibly as thenbsp;account of the destruction of the missionary settlement of North American Indians at Gnadenh�tten.* They burst into tears, and each immediately offered any little article he thought he could spare from hisnbsp;scanty store, as a present for their missionaries to send to the scatterednbsp;Indian converts. By 1758, New Herrnhut had become a pleasantnbsp;little village ; and where before only barren rock and heaps of sand werenbsp;spread around, there was now the missionary�s house, the chapel, thenbsp;court-yard, and the garden, all laid out in neat and regular order, andnbsp;the adjacent land was now clothed in summer with the most rich andnbsp;verdant grass ; so that the settlement might justly be considered as thenbsp;� garden of the Lord� in the midst of the most desolate � wilderness.�nbsp;The Brethren even introduced sheep into Greenland, and the attemptnbsp;succeeded beyond their most sanguine expectation.

In 1758, the settlement having become too small for the number of converts and inquirers, Matthew Stach removed, with four of the Greenland families, to a place about a hundred miles southwards, which theynbsp;called Lichteufels. Here they suffered many times from great scarcitynbsp;of food, from tremendous storms, in which their lives were often wonderfully preserved, and from manifold dangers among the icebergsnbsp;and snow-drifts. In 1760, the Brethren had the pleasure of baptizingnbsp;their first converts at Lichtenfels. The same year their hearts werenbsp;gladdened by materials from Europe being sent them, to build a spacious church, and also a new house, of which they were in much need.nbsp;In 1763, thirty years after the commencement of the mission, the firstnbsp;death occurred among the Brethren ; for Providence had hitherto, in anbsp;very remarkable manner, preserved both the life and health of these

Moravian missionaries, notwithstanding the many toils and hardships, the many storms and dangers, and the many other nameless ills to whichnbsp;they had been exposed. In 1768, an awakening took place among thenbsp;Greenlanders at New Herrnhut and Lichtenfels, in consequence of onenbsp;of their angekoks renouncing his conjurations ; exhorting his countrymen to turn to the God who made heaven and earth ; and telling themnbsp;that he and the other angekoks had hitherto deceived them. About twonbsp;hundred were baptized in the course of this year. In 1787, died thenbsp;venerable Matthew Stach, aged 77 years; 38 of which he had spent asnbsp;a missionary in Greenland, and 16 in North America, whither he hadnbsp;removed. Many of the Greenlanders had by this time learnt to read,nbsp;and some of them to write. As they had no letters of their own, thenbsp;missionaries taught them the Roman character, as being the mostnbsp;plain and easy. � The children in general were quick, and very eager tonbsp;learn.

The Brethren, with a view of keeping up a sense of religion in the minds of the people, held frequent meetings with them during the week.nbsp;Every day, at six in the morning, there was a short meeting of all thenbsp;baptized converts, young and old, called the morning-blessing, ornbsp;prayer. At eight o�clock, the congregation met for half-an-hour, whennbsp;a text of scripture was briefly explained, and a hymn was sung ; afternbsp;which the children assembled to he catechized, and then proceeded tonbsp;school�the boys to a catechist, and the girls to one of the missionaries�nbsp;wives. In the evening, when the men had returned from their huntingnbsp;or fishing, a meeting was again held with aU the congregation, in whichnbsp;they either discoursed on a passage of scripture, or employed themselves in singing hymns. The Greenlanders had a taste for music, andnbsp;their singing, particularly that of the women, was very harmonious.nbsp;The missionaries introduced the use of musical instruments among theirnbsp;converts ; and their little band of church-music consisted of two ornbsp;three viohns, a couple of flutes, and a few guitars. Several of the congregation also learnt to blow the trumpet and the French-horn, whichnbsp;were employed instead of a bell, to caU the congregation together fornbsp;worship. Their views of divine truth, after it had broken in upon theirnbsp;dark hearts, were often clearly and simply expressed by the earlynbsp;Greenland converts. One of the helpers (or catechists) said one day,nbsp;� It is with us as when a thick mist covers the land, which hinders usnbsp;from seeing and knowing any thing ; but when the mist disperses, wenbsp;get sight of one corner of the land after another ; and when the sunnbsp;breaks forth, we see every thing clearly and distinctly. So, while wenbsp;remain at a distance from our Saviour, we are dark and ignorant ofnbsp;ourselves ; but the nearer we approach him, the more light we obtain

in our hearts, and thus we learn to discover all good in Him, and all evil in ourselves.� *

Between the years 1733 and 1823, it is computed that the number of converts baptized by the Brethren in Greenland was about 4,500, andnbsp;of these not more than ten had relapsed into heathenism, since the commencement of the mission. In 1823, the congregations of their threenbsp;first-formed settlements amounted to 1278 Greenlanders.

In 1844 the total number of converts under the charge of the Moravian missionaries, was 1,864, independent of the many natives whonbsp;occasionally visit their stations, and return back to their distant homes.nbsp;The whole of the New Testament, and the Book of Psalms, have beennbsp;published by the British and Foreign Bible Society in the Greenlandnbsp;language, and various friends in England and Germany have assisted tonbsp;translate and print several useful works for the use of the Moravian congregations in this far distant land. The Brethren themselves have withnbsp;great labour and pains compiled and printed in Greenlandish, a Harmonynbsp;of the Gospels, a Hymn-book, Spelling-book, and Catechism, a shortnbsp;History of the Bible, for children�s use, besides a Grammar and a Dictionary, which exist only in manuscript.

Great joy and gladness attended the solemnization of the centenary jubilee of the Greenland Mission, on the 19th and 20th January, 1833,nbsp;by the native Christian congregations all along the coast. About fiftynbsp;Greenland women and children assembled from the nearest outposts,nbsp;and the men and boys came in such numbers from the twelve scatterednbsp;posts, even the most distant, that only ten were missing on the day ofnbsp;celebration. They each received gifts sent them from the Brethren atnbsp;Herrnhut in Saxony, and from benefactors in England, Scotland, Russia,nbsp;Sweden, and America, for which their gratitude was unbounded, andnbsp;many hundred times did they repeat � Great thanks and salutations tonbsp;our friends in the East.� The Brethren read them a pastoral letter, innbsp;the chapel, which was lighted up with a hundred little tin lamps, whichnbsp;the missionaries had made for the occasion, and which were placed roundnbsp;the walls. At the hour of service, they sang the hymn beginning�

� Praise God for ever; boundless is his favour, To his church and chosen flock.�

* See Brown�s � History of Missions,� chiefly quoted from Crantz�s History of Moravian Mission to Greenland,� and the Periodical accounts of the Brethren.

Labrador.�The first idea of establishing a mission among the Esquimaux of the Labrador coast originated with a Moravian Brother named Erhardt, who had been employed as pilot by a Dutch ship, and had witnessed the flourishing condition of the Brethren�s station at New Herrnhut, in Greenland. In 1752, he applied to the Hudson�s Bay Company,nbsp;for leave to go to preach to the natives of Labrador, and was refused,nbsp;but was soon after engaged to accompany three London merchants, whonbsp;had fitted out a vessel to trade along this coast. They took with themnbsp;four other Brethren, and a wooden house, and arrived safely in latitudenbsp;55 degrees, near to where the settlement of Nain now stands. Countnbsp;Zinzendorff, who was then in London, was opposed to mixing tradingnbsp;transactions with the work of a Christian mission ; and it seems he wasnbsp;right ; for this first expedition did not succeed in its object of promotingnbsp;the rehgious good of the Esquimaux. Erhardt was murdered, soonnbsp;after his arrival, by the natives, who were constantly at war with thenbsp;traders. On hearing of this disaster, Jens Haven, a poor Moraviannbsp;carpenter, conceived a very strong desire to go and labour among thenbsp;Esquimaux; and, in 1764, after spending some years as a missionarynbsp;in Greenland, he travelled on foot from Herrnhut to Holland, andnbsp;from thence to England, in order to gain assistance in prosecuting hisnbsp;design. After waiting some time, he obtained an interview with Sirnbsp;Hugh Palliser, then governor of Newfoundland, who promised himnbsp;his assistance and support ; and when he returned to his post, issued a proclamation, for the protection of the Brethren and the furtherance of their mission, in the name of his Majesty George HL, anbsp;protection which the Moravian missionaries have to this day enjoyed.nbsp;Jens Haven and Drachart, with others of the Brethren, now madenbsp;voyages every year to the coast of Labrador, returning to England innbsp;the winter. Although the Brethren were always well and joyfullynbsp;received by the Labrador Esquimaux, who listened willingly to theirnbsp;instructions, yet the murderous contests between the natives and thenbsp;European traders stiU continued, which induced the British government,nbsp;in 1769, to grant to the missionaries a large tract of land upon thenbsp;Labrador coast, that they might establish a permanent mission, andnbsp;spread the knowledge of Christianity. Upon this, the Brethren made anbsp;written agreement with the natives, and satisfied them for their land bynbsp;presents of fishing tackle ; and the Moravian Society in London fittednbsp;out a ship to sail annually to the Labrador coast with supplies for thenbsp;missionaries. The vessel they named � The Harmony.� *

* It is a remarkable instance of the merciful protection of Providence, that this missionary ship, so essential to the existence of the Labrador settlements, has been pre-

The Brethren were so well received by the Esquimaux of Labrador, that they were able from the first to deliver the gospel message to themnbsp;faithfully and perseveringly, the natives coming in great numbers to livenbsp;round the Moravian settlements. The chief opposition was from thenbsp;Angekoks, or sorcerers, some of whom continued their enchantments,nbsp;and endeavoured to silence the missionaries, and prejudice the peoplenbsp;against them ; but this was of no avail ; for the Brethren�s prayers fornbsp;the Divine assistance were granted them, and they were enabled to confound their subtle adversaries.*

Like their brethren in Greenland, the missionaries in Labrador often suffered the hardships of cold, hunger, and storms ; but they perseverednbsp;through all difficulties and dangers. In 1776, they purchased a tract ofnbsp;land of the natives, three German miles square, and formed anothernbsp;settlement in Okkak creek, the forests at Nain supplying them withnbsp;timber for their houses. Another trial the Brethren had to hear, wasnbsp;that of many of their congregation leaving them, being enticed by thenbsp;traders in the south, and the allurements of better food and more libertynbsp;to do as they pleased. But after a time, they quarrelled with their newnbsp;friends, and were glad to return to the missionaries, saying, they werenbsp;the �true men,� and they would leave them no more. In 1800, thenbsp;Esquimaux began to take a lively interest in the spiritual welfare, notnbsp;only of their own countrymen, but also of their feUow-Christians innbsp;Greenland, and manifested their concern by writing them several affectionate letters.

In 1809, the joy of the Esquimaux converts was rendered complete, by their receiving an edition of a Hymn-book and the Brethren�s Harmony of the Gospels, translated into their own dialect (which verynbsp;nearly resembles that of Greenland), and also the Gospels of St. Lukenbsp;and St. John, printed by the Bible Society ; and soon afterwards onenbsp;of the missionaries finished translating the Acts, and the Epistles to thenbsp;Romans and Ephesians. These were the first books they had possessed, and they delighted them extremely ; for hitherto the instructionsnbsp;given by the missionaries had been only conveyed by word of mouth,nbsp;but now they could read for themselves. In 1810, the baptized Esquimaux at the three settlements of Nain, Okkak, and Hopedale, were 475nbsp;in number. The Esquimaux of Labrador have now the whole Newnbsp;Testament, and a considerable portion of the Old, printed in their ownnbsp;served in successive voyages, during a period of seventy-six years, without having evernbsp;experienced a serious accident ; though the navigation of the seas on the coast of Labradornbsp;is attended with peculiar perils, owing to the sunken rocks, ice-fields, and ice-bergs, withnbsp;which it is often beset.

language, through the liherality of the British and Foreign Bihle Society. The congregations, including that of Hehron, established in 1830, latelynbsp;numbered 1094 Esquimaux converts.*

We have now brought our Review of Missions and Missionary Stations throughout the world to a close :�it is but an imperfect andnbsp;cursory sketch, yet in it much of the mighty works of the Lord maynbsp;be traced, and should the perusal of the foregoing pages incite onlynbsp;one individual to take up the cause of Missions to the perishingnbsp;Heathen and Mahometans of this fallen world.

A short account of the establishment of the several Societies mentioned in the Missionary Guide Book, who are engaged in propagating thenbsp;Gospel among the Heathen and Mahometan nations of the world.

The British colonies in North America were first settled by private persons under grants from the Crown ; these persons were of variousnbsp;religious denominations, most of them dissenting from the Church ofnbsp;England. The first planters were zealous for religion, hut their children and grandchildren by degrees lost much of its spirit, and the worship of God, and the celebration of the sacraments came to he much

neglected; so that in the year 1700 there were not more than five churches in this large tract of country, though more than half of thenbsp;number of its inhabitants were then members of the Church of England. In this dark state of things, the providence of God raisednbsp;up several eminent men who were zealous in their endeavours to redress the evil ; among these were Mr. Boyle, Dr. Stanley, and Archbishop Tenison ; and by their exertions, a Society was formed andnbsp;incorporated by Royal Charter in the year 1701, to which was given thenbsp;name of � The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreignnbsp;Parts.� * The primary object of this Society being to promote Christianity in the British colonies, its exertions, up to 1820, were mainlynbsp;directed to our plantations and colonies in North America, where itnbsp;employed missionaries and schoolmasters, in places which would havenbsp;been otherwise destitute of the public worship of God, and almost ofnbsp;the knowledge of the Gospel. Previous to the American war, thisnbsp;Society supported nearly a hundred missionaries, besides catechists andnbsp;school-masters, in those parts now called the United States, and expended between four and five thousand pounds annually upon these objects ; but after the American provinces had separated from the mothernbsp;country, the help of the Society was withdrawn, and we find that innbsp;18] 3 it employed in Canada, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland, between forty and fifty missionaries only, and about the samenbsp;number of catechists and school-masters.

In 1820, the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts commenced operations in India, by assisting materially to foundnbsp;the College of Calcutta, for the education of missionaries, and theirnbsp;instruction in the various languages of the East ; and, soon after this, itnbsp;took under its care and payment the missions in Southern India, formerly supported by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.nbsp;The number of missionaries supported, either in whole or in part, by thenbsp;Gospel Propagation Society, in 1844, was 327, of whom 188 were stationed in North America, 42 in the West Indies, 41 in India, 41 innbsp;Australia, 10 in Tasmania, 3 in New Zealand, 1 at the Cape, and 1 atnbsp;the Sechelles Islands.

Amongst the Protestant churches which have distinguished themselves by their zeal in the propagation of Christianity, that of the Unitas

* See �Abstract of the Designs and Proceedings of the Society,quot; by a Member, 1819.

Fratrum, or Moravians, is entitled to hold a very high rank. During a long course of years they have supported missions in various parts ofnbsp;the world, chiefly in Greenland, in Labrador, and among the Indians innbsp;North America ; in the West Indies ; among the Indians and negroesnbsp;in Dutch Guiana ; at the Cape of Good Hope, among the Caftres andnbsp;Hottentots ; and formerly among the Tartars near the borders of Asiaticnbsp;Russia, which mission the jealousy of the Russian Government forcednbsp;them at length to abandon. Ever since the year 1732 they havenbsp;laboured to extend the blessings of civilization and of Christianity to thenbsp;heathen world, and in many of their missions they have been signallynbsp;successful. In 1814 they employed 157 missionaries, including 67nbsp;females ; and as many as 26,000 converts from various heathen tribes,nbsp;were under their care. At present, their total number of missionariesnbsp;is 262, and their converts amount to upwards of 58,000. It would benbsp;impossible to preserve so large an establishment were it not for thenbsp;pecuniary assistance aflbrded by friends of other denominations of Christians, as the congregations of the United Brethren are but few in number, and the greater part are very poor. An association was formed innbsp;London in the year 1817 for the purpose of collecting funds for thenbsp;support of their missions, and the amount of these subscriptions duringnbsp;the year ending February 1844, was �5137.

For many years after the Rev. John Wesley and his followers separated from the Church of England, the management of the Wesleyan missions to the heathen was intrusted to the Rev. Dr. Coke, assisted bynbsp;a committee of finance and advice, resident in London. In 1786, threenbsp;Wesleyan ministers accompanied Dr. Coke, with the intention of settling in Nova Scotia for the purpose of instructing the natives ; but anbsp;succession of storms and adverse weather obliged them to steer for thenbsp;West Indies, where they shortly established a mission among the negronbsp;slaves of those islands. Such was the commencement of any systematicnbsp;measures for the conversion of the heathen among the Wesleyans, andnbsp;their undertaking was greatly prospered ; but their General Methodistnbsp;Missionary Society was not established till 1817. Dr. Coke died innbsp;1815, when it became necessary for a fresh arrangemement to take placenbsp;regarding their missions. This year (1815) their income amounted tonbsp;�9000, and they employed one missionary at Gibraltar, five in Ceylon,nbsp;one in New South Wales, one at Sierra Leone, one at the Cape,nbsp;thirty-six in the West Indies, twenty-six in North America and New-

foundland. Their missions in Caffraria (South Africa) have been much blessed to the enlightenment and conversion of the savage Caffres andnbsp;Hottentots ; and in the Feejee Islands, (in the South Seas,) they havenbsp;of late years laboured with much patience and diligence.

This Society was formed in 1792. A concurrence of circumstances led some of the more influential among this denomination of Christiansnbsp;to direct their attention to the East Indies, and Mr. Thomas and Mr.nbsp;Carey were the first to proceed to that country in 1793, and commencednbsp;a mission at Serampore, a Danish settlement near Calcutta. The Baptistnbsp;Society has laboured with much success in the translating and printingnbsp;the Scriptures in the various dialects of Hindostan and Burmah, andnbsp;Dr. Marshman of this society greatly assisted in commencing a translation of the Scriptures into Chinese, which was afterwards more fullynbsp;effected by Dr. Morrison of the London Missionary Society. In 1844nbsp;the number of missionaries employed by the Baptists was ninety.

This Society was founded in 1795, and its members consist of Christians of every denomination who admit of infant baptism. Thenbsp;exertions of this Society take a very wide range,�Asia, Africa, andnbsp;America, aU witnessing its zeal ; but their first and most favoured mission has been among the islands of the South Pacific Ocean. Also innbsp;Southern Africa a great work has been carried on by tliem, and innbsp;China, their agent�the devoted and zealous Morrison�has paved thenbsp;way for the future introduction of Christianity among that extraordinarynbsp;people, by compiling a Grammar and Dictionary in Chinese, and a translation of the Chinese Scriptures. Their funds amounted during the yearnbsp;1844 to �89,000, and the number of its missionaries was 170, withoutnbsp;including schoolmasters, assistants, or native teachers.

This Society held its first meeting in 1796. Its first established mission was in Jamaica, but the largest, and, for a time, the most successful mission it undertook, was among the Tartar tribes on the borders of the

Black and Caspian. Seas, but it was driven � from these territories by the jealousy of the Russian government, in 1825 ; though during thenbsp;reign of the Emperor Alexander they were protected and even assistednbsp;by that power. Since 1830, its labours in India have been considerable.

This Society was formed in 1797, and owed its origin to an address from the London Missionary Society, translated and circulated by Dr.nbsp;Van der Kemp, a Dutch physician, and a most zealous and devotednbsp;agent of that body at their Cape of Good Hope missions. The oppressednbsp;state of the continent of Europe at this time checked this rising missionary spirit, and the Netherlands Society was prevented from sendingnbsp;out missionaries till the year 1818. The Indian Archipelago has beennbsp;the chief seat of its labours, as many of these islands are occupied fornbsp;the purposes of trade by the Dutch.

In the year 1795, a clergyman left the sum of �4000 in his will, to be devoted to purposes, the object of which was, � the doing good tonbsp;men.� This circumstance gave rise to numberless thoughts and discussions on the subject of endeavouring to convert the heathen ; andnbsp;awakened in the minds of many an interest which, for the next fivenbsp;years, was never dropped, but was continually thought upon and canvassed by the excellent men of the day, till, at length, in 1800, thenbsp;Church Missionary Society was formed under the suggestions and helpnbsp;of Scott, and Simeon, and Newton, and Wilberforce, and the Thorntons,nbsp;and many others who were zealous for the truth of our holy religion,nbsp;and desirous of diffusing its light through the dark places of the earth.nbsp;This Society had many great and trying impediments to contend withnbsp;in its outset. The East India Company opposed its operations in Indianbsp;�the slave-trade checked and hindered them in Africa�the slaveowners in the West Indies thwarted their designs ; but they said, � Thenbsp;door will be opened for us, if we persevere and go forward : � and so itnbsp;has proved. In 1816, after labouring and struggling through mightynbsp;difficulties, its number of missionaries amounted only to nine Lutherannbsp;ministers, and five native Indian teachers, and its whole number ofnbsp;communicants was six blacks, converts belonging to the Society�s firstnbsp;station at Sierra Leone. A wonderful change has since that time taken

place,�impediments have vanished, and prejudices have been overcome, so that now this Society has its missionaries in almost every corner ofnbsp;the world ; the number of its stations amount to one hundred ; itsnbsp;episcopally-ordained missionaries amount to 116, and its European lay-agents to upwards of 40. Its native ordained ministers are 10 innbsp;number, and its native teachers and catechists amount to 1100, ofnbsp;which number 57 are females. The number of communicants at itsnbsp;several missions is 9628 ! It has 19 seminaries for the raising up anbsp;native ministry, and its number of scholars, at 742 schools, is 36,219.nbsp;Truly may we exclaim, � What hath God wrought ! � It has for itsnbsp;object the evangelization of the heathen world, in strict accordance withnbsp;the doctrines and discipline of the Established Church,

An institution or seminary was founded by members of the Lutheran Church in the Prussian capital, about the year 1800. The number ofnbsp;students, in 1825, who had been educated there, amounted to 40, whonbsp;had, at different times, been placed under the care of the Rev. M.nbsp;J�nick�, the head of the institution. In 1820, � The London Societynbsp;for Promoting Christianity among the Jews � employed five young mennbsp;from the Berlin seminary as its missionaries, and four more were employed by the Rotterdam Society. In 1835, two missionaries from thisnbsp;Society went to South Africa, and established a mission among thenbsp;Coranna tribe of Hottentots, at a place called Bethany ; but in most instances, this Society has rather assisted other bodies of Christians in thenbsp;work of evangelizing the heathen, than sought to estabhsh missions itself.

The formation of this institution is highly interesting. For this purpose, it pleased God to make use of the war then caiTying on between France and the Allied Powers of Europe. In 1814-15 the city ofnbsp;Basle in Switzerland was threatened with destruction and ruin from thenbsp;contending armies, but the danger was averted, and the town and itsnbsp;inhabitants marvellously escaped all injury. Previous to this, ever sincenbsp;the year 1806, a circle of friends had met together, in Basle, to read thenbsp;periodical accounts of English missions, and had often consulted together among each other, saying, � What remains to be done by ourselves ? � These Christian friends were some of them Swiss and some

Germans. They opened their hearts to a number of kindred spirits, who in both these countries were waiting for the coming of the kingdomnbsp;of their Lord ; and the result of their dehberations was the formation ofnbsp;the Basle Institution, in gratitude to Him whose hand had saved theirnbsp;city, and delivered Germany from a foreign yoke. The Rev. C. G.nbsp;Blumhardt, then minister of Burg, in the kingdom of Wirtemburg, wasnbsp;appointed head of the Basle college in 1816, and continued to hold thisnbsp;post till his death in 1838. The missionaries educated there have gonenbsp;to India and the Indian Islands, and the shores of Western Africa.nbsp;They have all been members of different German and Swiss Reformednbsp;Churches, and have been remarkably bound together in a bond of Christian love and fellowship. Since its foundation, in 1815, they have supplied 52 agents to the Church Missionary Society, 1 to the Propagationnbsp;Society, 1 to the Christian Knowledge Society, 2 to the London Jews�nbsp;Society, 2 to the London Missionary Society, 2 to the Berlin Society,nbsp;7 to the German Churches of North America, and 21 to the Russiannbsp;Evangelical Church. Since 1816, 175 missionaries have gone out fromnbsp;the Basle Institution. In 1842, 28 brethren were pursuing theirnbsp;studies in the college. The Malabar coast in India is now the scene ofnbsp;their principal labours.

� The first missionaries sent abroad by the Basle Missionary Society, went, in 1821, to the countries between the Black and Caspian Seas,nbsp;inhabited by Armenian Christians, and Persian and Tartar Mahometans.nbsp;They extended their labours, in 1824, to Shusha, in Georgia, and continued their exertions for some years after the Scotch and Unitednbsp;Brethren had been forced to quit the field, when, in 1835, an ukasenbsp;from the Emperor Nicholas, which most peremptorily prohibited thenbsp;operations of Protestant missions throughout the empire, struck a deathblow to the hopes of the Society in this quarter of the world. Thesenbsp;German missionaries had, at their first establishment in these countries,nbsp;sought and obtained the permission and assistance of that enlightenednbsp;and generous monarch the Emperor Alexander, in behalf of their plans.nbsp;Fifteen years of labour, the lives of several brethren, and �20,000 havenbsp;been spent by them in these provinces. Have they been spent in vain ?nbsp;We venture to say. No ! 50,000 Bibles, New Testaments, and Tracts,nbsp;have remained in the country ; many a seed of everlasting life has beennbsp;sown there ; some living witnesses of the gospel have been left as shiningnbsp;lights in those regions of spiritual darkness ; and who knows but Russianbsp;may again open her gates to the preaching of the pure gospel.? � *

* Extracted from a work entitled � The Evangelical Missionary Society at Basle, in 1842; an Appeal to all Christians.quot; By the Rev. H. Hoffman, Principal of the Missionary College at Basle.

This Society commenced soon after the London Missionary Society (in 1795,) with which it held early connexion in a mission to the Foulahnbsp;tribe on the western coast of Africa. For a number of years afterwardsnbsp;it was unable to effect any more than to aid the funds of other societiesnbsp;�until an opening occurred in 1821, in Southern Africa, from thenbsp;circumstances of the colonial government having made peace with thenbsp;Catfre tribes without the bounds of Cape Colony, and also of the chiefnbsp;Gaika being desirous of obtaining missionaries for his people. Rev.nbsp;W. Thompson, of the Glasgow University, and his associate Mr. Bennie,nbsp;therefore proceeded to Southern Africa to act with Mr. Brownlee, ofnbsp;the London Missionary Society, who had lately been appointed by thenbsp;colonial government as a missionary to the Catfres, in consequence ofnbsp;Gaika having made it one of the conditions of peace that missionariesnbsp;should reside in his country. This society soon established a printingpress, and furnished themselves and the London missionaries withnbsp;several books in the CalFre language. In 1831, they had 75 orderlynbsp;scholars from among the natives, all dressed in European style�and thenbsp;missionaries had translated the Gospel of St. John. Their system ofnbsp;education was the same as that employed by the � Society for teachingnbsp;the native Irish to read their own language��that is, all who can readnbsp;are employed to teach their neighbours at so much per head, and without any apparatus beyond hooks. Besides this system, the Glasgownbsp;Society has ten schools, four of which, in 1841, were taught by natives.

It was about the year 1823 that several pious members of the Reformed Lutheran and Consistorial Churches in France united to formnbsp;this Society, which was entitled � Soci�t� des Missions Evang�liques cheznbsp;les peuples non Chretiens.� It established a seminary at Paris for teachingnbsp;the Oriental languages, and M. Monod was for many years its President.nbsp;M. Galland, minister of the French church at Bonn in Switzerland, firstnbsp;took the charge of the institution in 1823,�M. Gobat and Mr. Lemuenbsp;were among its first students ; the former (now Bishop of Jerusalem)nbsp;served the Church Missionary Society for many years in Africa, and thenbsp;latter was among those who established the French South-Africa Mission, This society publishes a monthly notice of its proceedings in the

� Archives du Christianisme,� and a quarterly � Journal of Evangelical Missions � it publishes on its own account. In 1829, there were innbsp;connexion with the Paris Society 86 Auxiliaries and 21 Ladies� Associations, and its income amounted to about �1300. Its chief field ofnbsp;missionary exertion has been Southern Africa, where its labours havenbsp;been much blessed. They extended their missions to the native Africannbsp;tribes beyond the colony of the Cape in 1831, but for the first two yearsnbsp;they were chiefly confined to the French Refugees living about thirtynbsp;miles from Cape Town. The Bechoana tribes are their peculiar charge,nbsp;and their stations are so situated as to be within reach of the London So-cietv-stations at Lattakoo, with whom they keep up a friendly connexion.

In the Missionary Register for 1829, there is a very interesting description of the ordination and setting apart of the first young mennbsp;who were sent out, four in number, by this little society, to Southernnbsp;Africa. The society originated entirely in the reformed congregationsnbsp;of the Valley of Barmen, on the Rhine. This beautiful spot is situatednbsp;in a part of the Prussian dominions, which formerly belonged to thenbsp;King of Wirtemburg, and contains sixty thousand persons. It is anbsp;manufacturing district, and all the inhabitants are of the Reformednbsp;religion, living in much harmony and religious peace.

Having now taken a brief survey of the rise of the establishment of the diflcrent European societies engaged in missionary work, we will concludenbsp;by a short account of the commencement of the American Missionarynbsp;Societies. Each of the five principal denominations of Protestantnbsp;Christians in the United States has its respective missionary society,nbsp;namely, the Congregationalists�the Presbyterians�the Baptists�thenbsp;Methodists, and the Episcopalians. The most influential of them allnbsp;by far is the � American Board of Foreign Missions,� which wasnbsp;established in 1810, and was incorporated in 1812. It is composednbsp;chiefly of members of the Congregational or Independent churches. Itnbsp;has sent missiontu'ies into almost all the quarters of the world ; but thenbsp;chief scenes of its indefatigable labours are, the Sandwich Islands,nbsp;Turkey and Persia, Bombay, Ceylon, China, and the wilds of Northnbsp;America. Its proceedings are detailed in the � Missionary Herald,� anbsp;monthly periodical, published at Boston. It has been very instrumental

472 nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;APPENDIX.

in translating and printing various editions of the Holy Scriptures, and other useful and elementary hooks into the languages of the countries innbsp;which its missionaries are labouring, and one peculiarity seems to attachnbsp;to it more than to any other society�that of almost invariably sendingnbsp;out a physician to every mission in which it engages.

The other societies of the United States, are the � American United Foreign, or New York Missionary Society,� established in 1818 (composed mostly of Presbyterians), whose labours have been confined tonbsp;North America�The Baptist Missionary Society, established previousnbsp;to 1819 (whose missionaries, Mr. and Mrs. Judson, established thenbsp;Burmah Mission)�The � Methodist Missionary Society,� establishednbsp;in 1818, whose exertions have been mainly directed to the black andnbsp;coloured population of the United States ; and last (though by no meansnbsp;the least worthy of notice as of encouragement,) the Episcopal Missionary Society, first formed (at the suggestion partly of the Churchnbsp;Missionary Society) in 1820. It is under the superintendance of thenbsp;nine bishops of the American Episcopal Church. This society is cooperating with members of our church for the good of the Nestoriannbsp;Christians in Persia, and it has a few zealous and able ministers innbsp;other parts of the world.

There are, besides the various Missionary Societies already noticed in this brief survey, several very able and excellent societies which havenbsp;materially aided and helped forward the work of missions, as�

The Religious Tract Society nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.1799

y{ J	--------------------!---------

1 4'
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Name of Society, Tribe or Nation, and Missionary Station.	1 1	�ll feil C-S	1 .� � s	.23 o	'S s	V8-S S-�
LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY. MALAGASSE AND NEGRO. Madagascarnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........ (This Mission is suspended for the present, but is occasionally visited by the latenbsp;Missionaries.) Mauritius..... Minow Isle (off the West Coast of Madagascar)	2	4	75 Station	4 suspe	400 nded.	1818 Suspended in 1837.nbsp;1837nbsp;1842
SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL IN FOREIGN PARTS. NKORO AND FRENCH. Seychelles Islands Mauritius	3		N 0	ret 4	u r n 8.	1842 1841
AMERICAN BOARD OF MISSIONS. ARABS AND NKORO. Zanzibar ............	2					1841

Name of Society^ Country, Tribe or Nation, and Missionary Station.	s.	�2 S	1 �	s 1	'S J	s � o s	S �
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. ENGLISH. Malta (relinquished in 1842)							1815
GREECE. GREEK. Syra (Isle of) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1	1	10		6	�93	1828
ASIA MINOR. GREEK AND TURK.nbsp;Smyrna ......	1						1830
EGYPT. COPTS. Cairo	2	1	8		4	217	1826
ABYSSINIA. ABYSSINIAN.nbsp;Ankobar	3						1829 *1831
LONDON MlbSIONARY SOCIETY. IONIAN ISLANDS. ENGLISH. Corfu	1				3		1819
WESLEYAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY. MEDITERRANEAN.nbsp;SPANISH ANO ENGLISH. Gibraltar Malta	1 1	5 1		76 16	2 1	248 26	1808 1823
SCOTTISH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. ARABIA.nbsp;ENGLISH AND ARABS. Aden	1						1841
AMERICAN BOARD OF MISSIONS. GREECE, TURKEY, MESOPOTAMIA. GREEKS, TURKS, ARMENIANS, ANDnbsp;...nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;NESTORIANS, �Athens Smyrna Constantinople Broosa Trebisond Erzeroum .. Ooroomiah Mosul and Asheta Cj-prus (Isle of)...... Aleppo	2 5 6 3 1 2 7 3 2 1	2 12 �i	6 *i	PrintiDg Pro��. Priutioff Pre*�.	d }40 1 1	180-^ 763 20 25	1831 1833 1831 1834 1814 1833 1841 1835 1841
SYRIA. DRUSES AND GREEKS. Boiront Abeih ........	3 2	1		Priotine Pte...	1		1823 1841

Nanie of Society, Cou'id'ry, Tribeytr Nation, and Missionary Station.	S �I	�9 �snbsp;quot;Inbsp;s	� fe;	j snbsp;snbsp;lt;5	42 8 S	s
AMERICAN EPISCOPAL MISSIONARY SOCIETY. GREECE. GREEKS. Athens ...... Crete (Isle of) ..........	1 1	4 1	12 2		Sever*] 2	750 120	1830 1837
TURKEY. GREEES AND ARMENIAN. Constantinople		N 0	ret	urns
MESOPOTAMIA. NESTORIANS.nbsp;Mardiii		N 0	ret	urns
AMERICAN BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. IONIAN ISLES, GREECE, AND ALBANIA. GREEKS. Corfu nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;,.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;' Patras nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;,, Joannina	1	Out	N 0 1nbsp;static	ret N 0nbsp;n to C	urns r e t unbsp;orfu.	r n 8.
LONDON SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIANITY AMONG THE JEWS. TURKEY AND SYRIA. JEWS. Constantinople.......... Smyrna ............ Jerusalem............ Safet Hebron and Tiberias ........ Beyrout ....... Aleppo Bagdad and Busaora Morocco	2 2 4 2 2 1 1 3 1	3	4	55 {	ACdleice of Ind	amp; School uitry.	1835 1829nbsp;} 1834 1843 1844 1843 1844 1843 1844

Name of Society, Tribe or Nation, and Missionary Station.	�s S I	�2 lt;2	.1	� 1 s fS	3	� ��	-I
LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY. MALAY PENINSULA. MALAYS, CHINKSU, ETC.nbsp;Malacca Singapore nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......... Penang (Isle of)..........	*1 2	�i			1 2 4	98	1815 1819 1819
AMERICAN BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. BIRMAN EMPIRE. BURMESE AND KARENS.nbsp;Rangoon Maulmein .. Amherst A va.............. Tavoy (and Karen Villages) Mergui ............ Ramree Akyab nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;. '� Sandowah	7 1 2 2 1 1 1	1 ;;	5 1 3 1 10 Several 2 21	200 20 50	�7 2 6 i �2	250 62 150 14 40	1813 1827 1822nbsp;1822t 1828 1829 1820nbsp;1820nbsp;1842
ASSAM. ASSAMESE AND CHINESE. Jypore nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;............ ; Nowgong j Sibsagore ............	2 1 2		3		2	40	1839 1841 1841
j nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;SIAM. SIAMESE. ] Bankok ............	3		1				1833
AMERICAN BOARD OF MISSIONS. MALACCA AND SIAM.nbsp;MALAYS, CHINESE, SIAMESE.nbsp;Singapore .. Bankok	6	1			1 1		1834 1831

Narne of Society, Country, Tribe or Nation, and Missio'i'Mi'y Station.	s 1	�S �S a	S� S	�� SInbsp;snbsp;S	.5S onbsp;o		� 'S 3	HI is
SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF
THE GOSPEL.
DIOCESE OF CALCUTTA. HINDOOS AND ENGLISH.'
Calcutta	5							1820
Howra (a suburb of Calcutta)......	1		3	46	2		55	1827
Tallygunge nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.......	1	i		130	1		28	1829
Barripore ..	2	1	24					1833
Cawnpore	1			7	4		iS)	1824*
Tamlook............	1							1841
DIOCESE OF MADRAS.
HINDOOS, MAHOMETANS, SYRIAN CHRISTIANS,
AND ENGLISH.
Madras	4				2		94	1727t
Tanjore	4	2	21	400				1766-i
Trichinopoly	2		10	50		�e	127	1766-1
Negapatam	1	i		30		9		1785
Dindigul .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1		4			ST		17871
�ombaconum nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..........	1		44					1838
Madura .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1		2			s		1838
Nazareth ., nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	1					a		1836
Moodaloor nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..	1		35					1836
Vellore	1	1	1			tc		1831
Cuddalore .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..	1	1				g		1832
Pulicat	1					d		1839
Cochin nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1					s:		1836
Tinnevelly ..	1					9		1836
Secunderabad and Valaveram ..	2					J		1842
DIOCESE OF BOMBAY.
MAHOMETANS, PARSERS, ETC.
Bombay	1			60	2		138	1825
Ahmedabad	1	1						1842
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY.
DIOCESE OF CALCUTTA.
HINDOOS AND MAHOMETANS.
Calcutta	3	5	27	141	15		865	1816
Krishnagur	5		38	80	12		570
Burdwan District	1		11	42	8		483	1818
Benares .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.....	3	2	3	15	3t		333	1815
Jaunpore .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	1	1			3		106	1842
Chunar		1	(5	56	4		109	1814
Gorruckpore	2	1	4	27	2		115	1824
Agra nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.........	4	1	10	70	13		643	1812
Meerut nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;............	1�		3	50	1		32	1815
DIOCESE OF MADRAS.
HINDOOS, MAHOMETANS, AND SYRIAN
CHRISTIANS.
Madras	3	1	13	62	2		147	1815
Masulipatam (Teloogoo Country)	2	1			1			1841
Mayaveram		1	6	20	5		204	1825
Tinnevelly DistrictH	�1		330	1178	120		3640	1820
Cottayam (with College) and Mavelicare	5		37	292	16		730	1817
Allepie nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1	i	18	57	8		267	1816
Cochin (now given up)			22	82	9		308	1819
Trichoor	2**		9	30	3		102	1842

Name of Society, Cowniry, Tribe or Nation, and Missionary Station.	I	'1 �	� g p	e i 1 s	.2 o	I	'amp;fl
LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY, CHINA. CHINESE. Canton nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;............ Hong Kong (Isle of) ........ Amoy Shanghai ............	1 3 2 3		1 2	Leang Agong	-Afa. -Chin-	'Sean.	1807 1842 1842 1843
INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. CHINESE AND MALATS. Batavia (Isle of Java) ........	1	1		41	3	77 {	1812 1819
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. CHINA. CHINESE. Hong Kong, Ningpo, and Shanghai	2						1839
BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. JAVANESE, MALATS, BTC. Samarang (Isle of Java) Padang (Isle of Sumatra)	1 1						�
AMERICAN BOARD OF MISSIONS. CHINA. CHINESE. Canton and Macao nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........ Hong Kong Amoy nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;............ Ningpo ............	1 2 1	1					1830 1842 1842 1843
INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. DAYAKS. Pontianak (Isle of Borneo) ...... Oto Karangan (Ditto)	3 2				2		1839 1842
EPISCOPAL AMERICAN SOCIETY. CHINA. , nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Chinese, Keelongsoo (near Ningpo)							1842
AMERICAN BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY. CHINA. CHINESE. Hong Kong nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	3		1				1842

Name of Society, Country, Tribe or Nation, and Mieeionary Station.	� 'S 1	�2 S .e	s	's i s lt;1	-S 1	� -�nbsp;3nbsp;�	ss
SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF
THE GOSPEL.
AUSTRALIA, VAN DIEMEN'S LAND,
AND NEW ZEALAND.
aborigines and ENGLISH SETTLERS.
New South Wales nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	27						1797
South Australia	1						1840
West Australia	1						1841
Port Philip nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..	2						1831
Van Diemen�s Land (or Tasmania)	10						1838
New Zealand	1						1839
Norfolk Island	1						1842
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. NEW ZEALAND�NORTHERN ISLAND.
NEW ZEALANDERS ANO ENGLISH.
Northeim District�
Tepuna ..		1		44	4	98	1815
Kerlkeri and Wangaroa	1	2	17	135	13	544	1819
Paihia and W�aikare .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.....	1	4	42	345	16	644	1823
Kororarika	1						�
Waimate		4	34	50G	23	801	1831
Kaitaia .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;: Middle District�		2	21	174	�13	600	1834
Tauranga nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..........	1		33	24	18�	1303	1835
Rotorua............		i	6	2	20	856	1835
Waikato and Wanukau nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1	3	30	316	22	2000	1838
Hauraki ..		2	59		14	1801	1839
Opotiki............		1	10		6	201	1841
Eastera District .. Western District�	3	1	30	133	47	2964	1839
Wanganui nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..........	1	1	43		32	2500	1839
Entry Island	2		23	143	40	1725	1839
WESLEYAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY.
NEW ZEALAND�NORTHERN AND
SOUTHERN ISLANDS.
NEW ZEALANDERS AND ENGLISH.
Northern Island�
Mangungu, amp;c. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	2			643		400	1827
Wairoa and Kaipara ..	1
Hokianga, amp;c. ..	1			346
Wangaroa	1			311		600	1 R.3f5
Waipa .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.......	1			106		442
Aotca	1			211		750	1841
Kawia, amp;:c...........	2			336		1063	1841
Taranaki, amp;c...........	2			580		336
Port Nicholson, amp;c......... Southern Island�	2			28		100 J	1842
Cloudy Bay	1			518			1842
Waikowaiti .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.....	1			*�	2
SOUTH AND WEST AUSTRALIA.
ENGLISH ANO ABORIGINES.		But	little			ade.
Buntingdale	1	But	little	progr	ess m	ade.	�
Perth nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;......	1	2		30	2	80	1840
GERMAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY.
NEW SOUTH WALES.
ABORIGINES.
Moreton Bav	2	No	infor	matio	n late	ly.

Name of Society, Tribe or Natwn, and Missionary Station.	� �Snbsp;enbsp;enbsp;�S	s	II	� 1 8 lt;2	.2 o	�S 8	hl-.? SS
SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL. UPPER CANADA. MOSTLY BRITISH SETTLERS, AND A FEW INDIANS. Bytown, Perth, Pakenham, Portland, Kingston, Amherst, Peterborough, Darlington, Logansville, Newmarket, Scarborough,nbsp;Streetville, Whitby, York, Barry, Mono,nbsp;Orillo, Penetanquishine, Barton, Galt,nbsp;Brantford, Oakville, Trafalgar, Wellington, Dunville, Louth, St. Catherine�s,nbsp;Thorold, London, Port Burwell, Oxford,nbsp;Goderich, Devonshire Settlement, Mani-toulin Island, Chatham, Colchester, Sandwich ..........	37	9	..				1784
LOWER CANADA. BRITISH AND FRENCH SETTLERS. Gasp� District Quebec District Three Rivers District Montreal District nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	4 10 14 25	4					1749
NEW BRUNSWICK. ENGLISH. Bathurst, Miramichi, Shediac, St. John�s,A St Andrew�s, St. George�s, St. Stephen�s, (nbsp;Sussex Vale, Gage Town, Fredericton, and Jnbsp;others ..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.,nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.. J	' 29
NOVA SCOTIA, CAPE BRETON, ETC. BRITISH SETTLERS. Halifax, Newport, Windsor, Horton, Digby,' Yarmouth, Shelburne, Liverpool, Chester,nbsp;Lunenburgh, Amherst, Guysborough, An-tigonishenbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;I	19	5
Cape Breton Island :� Sydney ........... Arichat (L. Madame) ..	2 2	2
Prince Edward�s Island:� Charlotte Town, George Town, Milton,' Murray Harbour, New London, St.nbsp;Eleanornbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........	6
NEWFOUNDLAND. BRITISH (CHIEFLY FISHERMEN). St. John District Conception Bay do. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;........ Placentia Bay do. Fortune Bay do........... Bay of Islands do, Southern Shore do. Trinity Bay do........... Bonavista Bay do. Fogo do.............	3 8 1 1 2 2 5 2 2

Name of Society, Coventry, Tribe or Natioii, and Missionary Station.	i	4S 1 s	�to �� 1	1 s g	�S	1 ��	g�� M'l s-s
SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL.-(CoNTiMUED.) BERMUDA. BRITISH ARMY AND NAVY, AND SETTLERS. St. George Paget�s and Warwick Pembroke and Devon	2 1 1			1122	19	838
CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY. NORTH AMERICA. NATIVE INDIANS AND FUR TRADERS. Red River Settlement :� Upper Church (L. Winipeg) .. Middle Church (do.) Lower Church (do.)nbsp;Indian Settlement	i 1	2 2	2 2 1 2	130 100nbsp;145 72	2 2 2 4	138 166 196 184	1820 1825nbsp;1824 1833
Cumberland House Manitoba Lakenbsp;Ellice Fort (lat. 50� long. 100�)	1		1	4	2 i	78	1842 1843 1843
UNITED BRETHREN�S SOCIETY. CANADA, AND UNITED STATES TERRITORY.nbsp;NATIVE INDIAN TRIBES. New Fairfield (Upper Canada) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;�) Westfield, lat. 38� long. 91� (Missouri State) gt; Spring Creek, amp;c. (Arkansas) .. ..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;J	14			33 35 35	2 2 2	150 149 77	1792 1838nbsp;1801
WESLEYAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY. UPPER CANADA. BRITISH AND CANADIAN. Toronto, Kingston, Hamilton, Grand River, London, Guelf, Goderich, Amherst burgh,nbsp;Barrie, Warwick, Woodstock, Peterborough, Belleville, Brock, Alderville,nbsp;Rice Lake, St. Clair	19			2765	22	1349	1828
LOWER CANADA. BRITISH AND CANADIAN. Quebec, Montreal, Three Bivei'S, Wesley-ville, St. John�s, Odell Town, St. Amand�s, ( Durham, Shefford, Standstead, Compton, fnbsp;Melbourne, New Ireland ..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;)	17			4036	38	2072	-
NEW BRUNSWICK. BRITISH. St. John�s, Fredericton, Gage Town, St. A Stephen�s, Annapolis, Digby, Miramichi, gt;nbsp;Bathurst, and others...... )	23			3896	30	2314	1786
NOVA SCOTIA, CAPE BRETON, AND NEWFOUNDLAND. BRITISH SETTLERS, BTC. Halifax, Lunenburgh, Yarmouth, Cornwallis, i Windsor, Amherst, Guysborough, amp;c.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;J	12	6		4389	49	2283	]
Sidney, Ship Harbour, Charlotte Town, Be-i deque, Mun-ay Harbournbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;J Newfoundland	3 14	4		2333	29	1816	n786

Name of Society, Cowidry, Ti'ibe or Nation, and Mieswna'ry Station.	1	-i �	��S	J	� s	quot;o	'amp;�-s I
UNITED BRETHREN, OR MORAVIAN SOCIETY. LABRADOR. ESQUIMAUX. Nain nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.......... Okkak .......... ( Hopedale.......... f Hebron .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;.nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;}	28		4	101 154 64 65	2 2 2 2	as s	ITH 1776nbsp;1782nbsp;1830
GREENLAND. New Herrnhut ........ � Lichtenfels nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f Lichtenau .. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;f Fredericsthal nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;..nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;J	26		1	179 135 300 180	2 2 2 2	138	1733 1758nbsp;1774nbsp;1824
The population of Greenland is supposed to be	about	6000 slt;	uls.�S	ee �M	ssiona	ry Register.�