DEFENCE OF ABBEOKUTA.

IN our Number for May last we introduced an Engraving of a Dahomian Amazon, accompanied by a brief description of Gezo's formidable army, at the head of which this slave-trading monarch has wasted so many of the surrounding countries, burning the towns and villages, and slaying or carrying away as prisoners the miserable inhabitants. Much anxiety has been felt on account of Abbeokuta, as it was known that the female soldiers had demanded to be led against it, and that it was marked out as the next object of attack. The history of that town-the manner in which it has sprung up from amidst the ruins of the Yoruba kingdom-the return of the Egbas who had been liberated in Sierra Leone to this their own country, bringing with them the elements of improvement, and preparing the way for the commencement of a Christian Mission-the hopeful aspect of our Missionary work in this new sphere, and the promise which it afforded of the approach of better days for Africaall helped to invest Abbeokuta with peculiar interest. Just in proportion as it became an object of interest to us, was it viewed by Gezo and his people with increasing jealousy. They saw in it a rival state, rising into importance, and likely to interfere with them in their bloody wars and slave-trading pursuits. It was resolved, therefore, that it should be crushed at once, before it became stronger; and, in its destruction, Gezo hoped to vaunt himself as one of old-" My hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people: and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped."

The Chiefs and people of Abbeokuta had been much encouraged by the visit to their town of Mr. Beecroft, the British Consul, in January last. He had been at the Court of the King of Dahomey last year, and had endeavoured to dissuade him from his intended attack on the Egbas, but in vain. He was therefore able to forewarn the people of Abbeokuta of the coming danger, giving them wholesome counsel, and supplying them with means of defending themselves in case they should be attacked.

Toward the end of February, the inhabitants of the smaller towns to the westward of Abbeokuta conveyed intelligence to the Chiefs that the Dabomians were approaching; and on the morning of Monday, March the 2d, their army was to be seen from the heights within the city, driving before them the Egbas who had gone out to meet them on the open ground, but who, finding themselves unequally matched, retreated within the walls. There they turned on their assailants, the walls, as far as could be seen, being lined with the Egba soldiers, who, knowing that they were fighting for all that was most dear to them, were resolved on defending the town to the uttermost. The battle raged fiercely, the Dahomians advancing boldly-the Amazons at the head-fully expecting to force their way in, as they had done at other places, but checked by the fire of the Egbas, beneath which numbers of them fell. We may well conceive what a time of anxiety this must have been to the Missionaries, and that

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BAPTISM AND DEATH OF THE FIRST MNIKA CONVERT. part of the population who were not in the excitement of the contest. Gezo's army was numerous and well disciplined, flushed with victory; the Egbas, on the contrary, were little accustomed to war, and it was very doubtful whether they would be able to hold their ground. If they gave way, our Missionaries well knew what would be the consequence: a scene of horror would ensue, human blood would be poured forth as water, the survivors be led into captivity, and the town committed to the flames. The Missionary work would then be broken up, and this they knew to be Gezo's object. It was just "afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower," and he had come to "cut off the sprigs with pruninghooks, and take away and cut down the branches." It was therefore with them a time of earnest prayer, in which they cried mightily to the Lord for help. There was much on every side to stimulate them so to do. On the one side the battle was fearfully raging; on the other side of the town the women and children, fearful lest the enemy might prevail, were hurrying forth, weeping as they went, with some few men among them, to hide themselves in the woods from the tyrant's cruelty.* Nor were their prayers unheard. The Lord marked the proceedings of the proud monarch of Dahomey, and humbled him in his unprovoked attack on a people who desired to dwell at peace. "I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me. Because thy rage against me, and thy tumult, is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest." His soldiers, male and female, fought ferociously, but in vain; until at length, finding themselves baffled in every effort, they were compelled slowly and sullenly to retire, leaving 1200 of their number dead upon the field of battle, beside many prisoners in the hands of the Egbas. On their retreat, they vented the fury of their disappointment on some poor people whom they had taken prisoners while engaged in their farming occupations. These, to the number of 42, they put to death by cutting off their heads, which they intended to carry back to their own country; but in this they were disappointed. While engaged in attacking another town, the Egbas unexpectedly came upon them, routing them with great loss, and, in the hurry of their flight, they were compelled to cast the heads away.

Let us pray that the deliverance vouchsafed to the Egbas may not be without its due effect on their minds; that they may recognise the hand of God in this great national deliverance, and, casting away their idols, prepare themselves more diligently than ever to receive instruction from our Missionaries.

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BAPTISM AND DEATH OF THE FIRST MNIKA CONVERT. IN our Number for June we mentioned the case of the poor EastAfrican cripple, "whose heart the Lord opened, that he attended * We have endeavoured to represent this scene in our Frontispiece.

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BAPTISM AND DEATH OF THE FIRST MNIKA CONVERT.

unto the things which were spoken" by our Missionaries. The following extract of a Letter from the Rev. J. Rebmann-dated March 22, 1851-informs us that he has been removed by death

The first fruit of this Mission has been gathered in. Mringe, who has often been mentioned since 1848 as the subject of Divine grace working in his heart, was baptized on the 24th of November, and went to his eternal rest on the 3d of December last. Seeing that his constitution was rapidly sinking, in consequence of the cancer which had long ago destroyed his hands and feet, I visited him very frequently, being anxious to comfort him in his sufferings, and to ascertain his state of mind-whether he indeed personally and inwardly felt himself a sinner, and his consequent need of a Saviour. Orthodox answers to questions put by the Missionary are not decisive, from a person who for years has been taught the doctrine of salvation by Jesus Christ alone. Such answers may be given rather from memory than from a corresponding state of mind. It was his behaviour, taken as a whole, and especially the mentioning of particular sins in his youth, the remembrance of which he said ached him; his decided refusal of the country medicines, which his mother was desirous to apply, as being almost invariably connected with sorcery; his willingness to make an open confession of his faith; and his readiness to die; which convinced Mr. Erhardt and myself that he was, though a weak, yet a real believer in Christ, and as such entitled to baptism. Nothing remained but to make him understand, as much as possible, the nature and solemnity of baptism, for which purpose I went through the Baptismal Service with him twice; and, as he was so much dependent on his mother, on account of his helpless body, to get her consent to declare her son to be by that act taken out of every connexion with heathenism, and to be a member of the Church of Christ. Having gone so far, I fixed at last on Sunday, November the 24th, for his baptism, which then took place, all in the Kinika language, in the presence of his mother, Abbe Gunja, the Chief and one of the Elders, one of our servants, and a few other Wanika. He was living at the time in a little hut about three miles distant from us, which had been hastily constructed for him some months before his death, as is customary with the Wanika in the case of persons afflicted with cancer. This hut being too small, the baptism was administered in the open air, not long before sunset, that he might not be exposed to the heat of the sun. He was called Johannesi. Thus the first soul of the thousands and millions of this part of Africa has been translated from the reign of Satan into the kingdom of Christ, the pledge of the full harvest for which our faith has still to wait, and our love to labour. The Lord's name be praised, who allows even the least and most unworthy of His servants to lead souls to Him, who alone is our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. He had now no other wish than to depart from this troublesome world, and to go to Jesus; and, from the exhaustion of his body, it was clear to himself and others that his days on earth could not be expected to be many. I much wished to be present at his end, and to procure for him a Christian burial; the more so, as the Wanika are accustomed to deny people who die of cancer the usual way of burying, and cast them into cliffs or caves of rocks, from the foolish belief that if they are buried like persons who have died of some other disease, the dreaded cancer, or "máhana"-as it is called in their own language, a word which they are afraid even of pronouncing—will

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take hold on some one of the relatives. Having, however, some business to settle at Mombas, and Mr. Erhardt being unwell, it happened that in our absence Mringe died. He was immediately carried on a bedstead, and cast into the cavity of a rock.

At the sounding of the archangel's trump the rocks shall be rent, and the graves shall be opened, and the bodies of the saints arise. Nor shall our first East-African convert be wanting. He shall "stand in his lot at the end of the days."

DOMESTIC MANNERS OF THE HINDUS.

We do not call a man civilized, however magnificent his dress, whose manners are rough and uncultivated. Sparkling jewels and costly raiment will not make up for the want of kindly tempers and gracious manners. So it is with nations: we often find them with a kind of outward civilization, but the heart of the nation is not civilized. In China there is very much of this. At the Emperor's Court there prevails a stately ceremonial. In the houses of the Mandarins there is much taste and elegance, and the deportment of the people, in their intercourse with each other, is studied and polite; but true civilization is wanting there, for parents often in the most cold-blooded manner put to death their own children. So in India there is much of this appearance of civilization. There are splendid buildings, mosques, and pagodas, and beautiful structures erected in memory of the dead; there are princely Nawabs and rich Rajahs; one passes on his elephant, surrounded by his attendants; another receives his guests at a costly entertainment, and nautch-girls and fire-works are provided to grace the feast; but this is only the glitter on the surface, and the interior life of the people remains uncivilized.

True civilization is the effect of Christianity. The private dwelling is its home: there you will find it. There it produces affectionate hearts, makes people unselfish, leads them to seek their own happiness in the happiness of others, renders the wife the equal and companion of her husband, invests the children with value in the parents' eyes, who regard them as God's precious gifts to them, causes the father and mother to be respected and loved, and, if circumstances render it necessary, succoured by the children. It banishes quarrellings and evil tempers from the private dwelling, and makes it a loved and pleasant home. Our English homes are often such, and where they are such, Christianity has made them so. Domestic civilization is the product of Christianity, and nowhere is it to be found except where the Gospel has come and shed abroad in the hearts of men its renewing and sanctifying influence. A Christian Englishman's greatest earthly enjoyment is his home. Thither he hastens when the toils of business are over. He knows there is a welcome awaiting him there; that no sooner is he seen in the distance than some will run to meet him; that no sooner has he passed the threshold of his door than he will be gladdened by the sunshine of affectionate hearts and smiling faces. What a lovely

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thing pure Christianity is! It shares its blessings with the poor as with the rich. It beautifies the cottage of the labourer, it makes his humble habitation pleasant and cheerful, and it is the richest ornament of the rich man's house. It sanctifies wealth and it ennobles poverty. Pervaded by its influence, the royal palace becomes a tranquil and affectionate Christian home, and the lowly dwelling becomes the poor man's palace. Happy England! Happy, because she has the Gospel; and still more happy if that Gospel were more extensively and deeply influential.

Perhaps we should be more sensible how much we owe the Gospel, if we compared an English with an heathen home. We shall select that of the Hindu. If it be a poor man's dwelling, there is nothing attractive in its appearance. It is a small cabin, seven or eight feet high, without a single window; for, although the Hindus have long known glass, they have never used it as we do, to admit light, and yet shut out the heat and dust of the dry season, or the heavy rain and wind of other periods. The interior consists of two rooms: