Not many days after this affair, they fled and hardly an Indian has been seen at Pokeguma since. After my arrival in June a party of six men from Mille Lac came and gave us a formal invitation to remove there with our people. In July I went to visit our people on the Upper St. Croix and at La Pointe, whither they had fled. I informed them of the visit of the Mille Lac Indians, and that the Sioux are determined to prosecute the war. They were unanimous in saying we will return to Pokeguma, and you must not leave us. A few days since I received a letter from one of the Mille Lac men now at La Pointe, saying that he is coming to see us again, and that there will be 300 Indians this winter at Mille Lac, and one of us must go and open a school there. at our last communion day, on the first Sabbath of last month. There are now thirty-three members in all of the Indians. The opposition from the catholics is not so great as it has been, just because they see not at present what more they can do to us; but they are always ready to do what they can, if they only find a way. Last summer they did all they could to trouble me about my land. They attempted to take it away from me by their own councils; and when they could do nothing, they tried the law; and when they failed in that, they went to work another way to trouble me, to put me to a great expense, attempting to oblige me to make a great ditch through the whole length of my land, large enough to receive and carry off all the waters of their land which is above mine, wide and long, swampy ground. But the court of magistrates decided that because my land is only one twelfth part of the whole low land to be drained, only one twelfth part of the ditch should be dug by me. Our families have all been visited with sickness. Yes, the Lord has come into the midst of us and two of our number have gone into their eternal state of being. Our dear little babe that you and others saw in the Indian cradle was attacked on the 26th of August with dysen- My people are more inclined to take tery, and died on the 6th of September. up land and be farmers, but the chiefs But God is our helper and refuge in are doing every thing to prevent us to trouble. We have all been more or less clear land. They hold councils and ill with the same disease which has been || draw up acts to the end that no one shall very prevalent here. Mr. Ely's little take and clear land without their pergirl of three and a half years was at-mission, and those who shall be allowed tacked 27th August and died on the 2d of Septeinber. It is still a matter of doubt with us whether our Indians will venture back to winter by us, though they talk so strongly and are so unwilling to let us go to Mille Lac. The Lord I trust will direct. To him we constantly look and on him we will wait. LETTERS Abenaquis. FROM MR. OSUNKHIRHINE, Of the gradual progress which he is making in The state of things about the mission is encouraging, though we get along very slowly. We do not gain any new hearers from the catholic Indians, but our own young people are becoming better acquainted with the truth, and some of them serious. Two of them gave themselves up to Christ by profession, and were received into the church to clear shall not have more than two acres. They say the land must be reserved for future generations. They hinder greatly many who would be glad to work, but they cannot stop those who are not easily moved by their threats, because we know that they cannot stop us from taking and clearing land, because they cannot undo the custom and written agreement that was made before these present chiefs were in existence, that every one of the tribe has a right to take any piece of land in the woods belonging to the tribe and clear, and as much as he shall have cleared shall be his. The chiefs alone cannot change custom and agreement. They and the whole, tribe must do it together. But that is not the intention of the tribe at present, and I think will never be. People would rather divide into equal shares than to make such limits. I am sorry to say our school is very small at present. We have just now only six scholars. There is too much going and coming among my people with their families. Our teacher is going home for a few weeks for her health, and during her absence one church member, an educated Indian, will keen up the school, who will also employ h time in translating part of the Testament. We have now the gospel of Mark translated by another Indian of our tribe, and we are now correcting it for the press, which will be printed at Montreal by the Bible Society. The meeting-house of ours is nearly finished. It would have been finished long ago had the workmen who have promised to undertake it been faithful to their promises. But it is far otherwise. LONDON I lost another child last July, a boy six months old. I have only one left with me. Three brothers are gone to the other world. They are now with Jesus, I hope, and hope I shall see them by and by, when I shall finish my work here below. My last child's sickness and death cost me nothing, because I had Indian doctors of my own people, who did all they could to save the child, but God was willing to take him. Proceedings of other Societies. FOREIGN. MISSIONARY SOCIETY. Return of the Malagassy Refugees. AT a meeting in London, held on the 5th of October last, occasioned by the anticipated departure for the Mauritius of the Rev. Mrs. Johns with the native Christians from Madagascar, who, to avoid martyrdom, had taken refuge in Mauritius, and thence came to England, where they have spent some years. The number was originally six, one of whom had died and another had previously returned. Rev. J. J. Freeman, one of the secretaries of the society, addressing the meeting, made the following statements. As you have already heard, the way to Madagascar is not yet opon. We have had comparatively recent intelligence from that country, and we find that ordeals, infanticide, wholesale murders, and all the abominations of their cruelly despotic system not only continue, but have been fearfully multiplied among the people. Were the refugees to return to that part of the country which is under the government of the queen, and to place themselves within her reach, it would be death to them in some of its most appalling forms. The punishment for having left the country without the permission of the queen, is that of being burned alive. A fire is kindled on the ground, the parties adjudged to die are tied hand and feet, and fuel is then heaped upon them until they are consumed. That was the fate not long ago of nearly one hundred men. In consequence of the cruelties practised, large numbers had been tempted to desert the army; about one thousand were apprehended at different times, one hundred of whom were selected and put to death in the way I have stated. We hope that our friends before us will meet with an extensive sphere of usefulness in the Mauritius, which is within two or three days' sail of Madagascar, and from whence they may proceed thither, should there, in the providence of God, be a favorable opportunity for it. Our hope and expectation is, that we shall be able to establish a Madagascar mission in the Mauritius, under the broad shield of Euglish protection. There are two classes among whom our friends will find a door open for labor in the Mauritius. There are not less than 20,000 immediate descendants of the natives of Madagascar now living in the Mauritius, for the most part as free laborers. They or their parents, thirty or forty years ago, were introduced as slaves and continued as such till the period of emancipation, when, with the rest of the slaves, amounting to 80,000, they of course obtained their freedom. They are still regarded as natives of Madagascar, speak the language of that island, and are familiar with its customs. The other class consists of about 700 or 800 persons who have lately come there as emigrants from the coasts of Madagascar. The planters in the Mauritius were anxious to obtain additional laborers; for a time our government prohibited their importation, but prior to the embargo, these 700 or 800 had been procured. The prohibition has since been removed; numerous vessels have gone to the coast of Madagascar for the purpose of conveying emigrants, and although the queen has not given her consent to their transit, vast numbers are willing to avail themselves of the opportunity of settling as free laborers in the Mauritius; and it is expected that some thousands will become located there in that capacity. This large body of Malagassy, beyond the power and threats and cruelty of the queen, will come under the christian instruction of our friends here, and those who are already in the Mauritius. Our friends are going forth as native teachers, not ordained missionaries. They will leave England under the care of Mrs. Johns, who is going to rejoin her husband who has lately arrived in the Mauritius. Various questions were proposed to the four Malagassies, relating to their christian knowledge and experience, which led them to speak at length on these topics much to the gratification of the audience. Although they will not be able to join their own people in Madagascar, nor to re-establish the mission there, yet the number of Malagassies in the Mauritius is large, and on them a christian influence may be exerted. From late accounts it appears that the hostility of the rulers of Madagascar to Christianity and those who embrace it is not at all abated. During the summer of 1840 nine more of the native Christians were arrested, and after boldly confessing Christ, they suffered martyrdom, being set upon and speared to death. LONDON SOCIETY'S MISSION AT THE SAMOA Great Awakening among the People. THE Rev. T. Slatyer, under date of January 15th, 1841, gives the following account of the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit on the people among whom he labors. The first passage which he quotes from his journal is dated June 5th, 1840. the congregation. The Spirit still stays with us; and it is remarkable that native instrumentality has to-day been the means of such a blessing descending. Our deacon preached in the morning, and another efficient man in the afternoon. Congregation about one thousand. We Oct. 25. Through the mercy of God I have to record the commencement of my public preaching among the people of my charge this day; but such a day I never expected; one so deeply interesting. The sermon which I had written was from the words, "So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman," etc. sang a hymn, the subject of which was the blessedness of this people in having the gospel sent to them; after prayer and another hymn, I stood up, while there sat before me anxiously waiting for the word of life a thousand souls. It was a most deeply affecting sight to me, especially as I looked round and thought of the solemn relation I was just about to recognize among them, as the watchman of their precious souls. The profoundest solemnity pervaded the dense congregation as I read the text, after which I proceeded, as introductory, to make a few remarks on the occasion of my first stand An astonishing awakening took place this evening. The assembly not less than a thousand. The chapel was filled with crying. Concern and feeling pervaded the congregation. Many were carried out in an agony of feeling. 7. This has been a memorable day. The text from which brother M. preached seemed just adapted to meet the state of feeling: "And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious." In the afternoon, at the examination, a most powerful and general awakening again took place. It would be difficult, if not impossible to describe the scene. In all direc-ing up in that pulpit to preach to them the evertions men were carrying out the women, many of them in apparent convulsions. The Lord's supper was a most melting season. 8. The whole of this morning was occupied by brother M. and myself in conversation with inquirers. In the afternoon, as circumstances seemed loudly to call for it, we held a public meeting, the whole town seeming to heave with religious feeling. Again there were the most marked signs of the presence of the Holy Spirit, in his awakening and subduing influencesprayers and addresses were the order of the meeting. The chapel was thinned by the numbers obliged to be taken out. One old man, a principal chief in this place, and standing on the borders of the grave, was taken out quite overcome. Brother M., unable to proceed, his voice being drowned by the sobbing and weeping of the congregation at several parts of the service. Oh what brokenness of heart did many seem to possess! 9 and 10. Held services on the evenings of both these days, the awakening continuing in all its power, praying and weeping being heard night and day in all directions. lasting gospel, and thanked God that, as he had brought me among them, so now he had enabled me thus fully to begin his work. I called upon them to unite with me in this thanksgiving, and in solemn prayer to God, that he would graciously bless the beginning of my labors for the salvation of their souls; but ere this, considerable feeling had begun to manifest itself in sobs, and no sooner had the first sentences of prayer escaped my lips than my voice was entirely drowned by the simultaneous weeping of the whole congregation. Not being able to proceed with prayer, I looked around on the congregation, and to me it was the most affecting sight I ever witnessed-every head was down and all were weeping-the feelings of some were so strong that they were obliged to be taken out. About twenty minutes passed away before I could proceed with my sermon, to which there was paid the most solemn attention. In the afternoon we held the examination, when it appeered they had remembered every important item of the sermon. The deacon informed me in the evening, that chiefs who had looked savage before, had that day been broken down. Such an encouraging commencement of my labors I had never anticipated. To the Lord be all the praise! 17. Since the 10th I have been at Pagopago. Yesterday I returned to Leone and found the awakening unabated in its force. During my few days' stay at P., a powerful revival took Nov. 4. This has been our day for public place; the intelligence in reference to the work thanksgiving, humiliation, and prayer. Last at Leone stirring them up afresh. Through night the church met again for prayer, and now Matthew Hunkin assisting me, I held conversa- must we not say, that the Lord hath more than tion with twenty individuals recently awakened; answered our prayers? We met first in the among which the most interesting case was that early morn at seven o'clock-the congregation of a very old blind woman. Surely nothing upwards of a thousand. This was for thankseould give her that clear apprehension of the giving and humiliation, and was a very interdoctrines of the gospel, but the Holy Spirit.esting, and solemn, and promising season. Still less could any thing but the cross of Christ, have excited those tears which she shed, and that tenderness of feeling she manifested, for seventy years of heathenism and darkness have passed over her head. 28. Sabbath. This has been a deeply interesting day. The awakening seems to have had a fresh impulse. There was considerable feeling during the morning service, but in the afternoon there was a great breaking down. The text was a solemn one, Rev. xx: 15, and not long after the commencement, the preacher's voice was drowned amidst the cries and sobs of We met again at eleven o'clock, when I preached from Psalm cxviii: 25; after the sermon, during which some seemed to feel, but many, I feared, were hardened, I called on the deacon to pray, being exhausted myself; his prayer was most deeply earnest; with weeping and supplication did he crave prosperity for us, and confess the greatness of our sins before God. The Lord seemed to come down among us. After prayer I again addressed the people, and besought them not to turn away the mercy of God this day; the Lord, I trust, enabled me to speak and to show them that he was waiting to be gracious to them. The whole congregation other The Rev. Mr. Hardie, laboring at another station, writing on the 29th January, says Since my last communication we have experienced many tokens of the Divine favor, and which, blessed be God, were never more manifest than now. During the last nine months 124 fresh members have been added to our church, making a total of 211 members. The number of candidates continues to increase. At present they amount to 200. Attendance on the preaching of the gospel is also very promising, and the attention is generally very marked. While these pleasing instances of the Divine favor call for gratitude on the part of the society, they afford encouraging evidence that its Jabors have not been in vain, and supply an answer to the many prayers which have been presented on behalf of this mission. Oh may these prayers be continued and become more fervent and effectual! that the present measure of success may be but as the droppings before a copious shower of divine influence on all these islands. tered on. If we are not diligent in the Lord's work, assuredly the votaries of error, and the servants of antichrist will take advantage of our indolence, and thus the church in future ages will have to mourn that the present has lost so much by its apathy and carelessness. The doctrines of the church of Rome are too well suited to the evil propensities of men to remain long without their adherents. If, after our best efforts, they do gain a footing on the islands, let us never have to reflect, that it was owing to our negligence that the poor natives accepted of error, instead of the truth as it is in Jesus. We continue to enjoy much pleasure in our little church, which consists at present of about thirty members. We hope to have an addition soon, out of a class of candidates for church membership. O for more wisdom from above to choose those only whose names are written in heaven. WESLEYAN MISSION IN CEYLON. In the last number of the Herald, page 21, some statements respecting this mission were given in connection with a letter from Mr. Poor of the Madura mission, who recently visited Batticaloa, the seat of the mission to which the extracts below relate. The Rev. Mr. Stott writes, 9th September, 1840 I have lately returned from, a missionary tour through Bintenne, a district in the interior, from Batticaloa. I send you a journal of my travels which I have no doubt will interest you. His year, and provide him with hoes, axes, etc.; and, when thirty children can be found to learn, to establish a free-school. If these poor outcasts of men were settled in one place, I have no doubt that they would soon embrace ChristianThey appear simple and docile, have no false religion, and listen with great attention to spiritual things. The governor intended to accompany me, We shall be very sorry, however, if our but his health would not permit. He, however, friends in England are led from the above staterequested Mr. Atherton, the district judge and ments to suppose that the conflict is terminated assistant-agent of Batticaloa, to go with me. We wish the state of things here to be fairly, excellency now proposes to give on a lease to He did so, and we were much interested faithfully, and fully reported, that our christian friends may be directed aright in their prayers each Veddah who is willing to settle and culti for us at the throne of grace. A vigorous onset vate, three acres of land; to assist him in buildhas been made, several advantageous positionsg a house, give him seed-grain for the first have been secured, many fair trophies have been won from the enemy, and the hope of a decided and glorious victory urges on the fight, but these very advantages which we have gained have awaked the slumbering energy of our foes, and provoked them to a desperate andy. deadly struggle to secure their falling empire. The holiness of the gospel, interfering with their heathen and unholy customs, excites the hatred and opposition of their ignorant and wicked minds. They cannot bear to have their sins forbidden, nor to see their ranks continually deserted. Every effort is made by them which either threatening, force, or cunning can devise, to prevent the people from embracing the gospel, and to ensnare and draw back those who have embraced it. Many of the converts know experimentally the meaning of the words of our Savior, "If they have persecuted me they will also persecute you." If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more they of his household." Rev. Mr. Mills, connected with the same mission, writes from Upolu, 10th February, 1811 At no former period has there been more need for the church to put forth her strongest efforts, ly to strengthen missions of long standing, In his journal, 5th August, Mr. Stott writes In the morning we started for Kittool, a distance of six miles. We crossed the beds of two rivers. The name of the second is Mundaniaru. It is evidently a very large stream in the wet season. At Kittool we saw six families of Veddahs. I conversed with them at some length, and found them extremely ignorant. They have no knowledge of God; nay, they have never heard of such a being. They have some idea of evil spirits, or devils, and suppose that these afflict them. They therefore make devil-dances for afflicted persons, except in cases of cholera. Upon those occasions they procure from the moormen cocoa-nuts, rice, fruit, etc., which they offer as a sacrifice to these devils. Having placed this sacrifice on a kind of frame, they dance round it, until, as they suppose, they become possessed with the devil, and are able to give answers, as from him, respecting the removal of the affliction, etc. They also use charms, made by tying eight small knots, and loosing one every day; and during the eight days take no liquid. They have no doctors among them and use no medicine. When any of their number dies they bury him and leave the place. A man only marries one wife at a time, from whom he seldom separates. The marriage is contracted by the parents, when the children are infants; and they are both taken by the parents of one, and brought up together. When they are capable of taking care of themselves, the parents of the girl give them a bow, three arrows, and an axe, and a tract of jungle-land, with a mountain to live on, and send them away. They never interfere with each other's jungle. They eat deer, elks, pigs, monkeys, lizards, and various other animals; but their principal food consists of honey, yams dug up in the jungle, wild mangoes, and other fruits. We saw them roast a monkey and eat it. I hear that they eat the bones also. They do not shave, but cut their beards with their arrows. They wear scarcely any covering and have no houses. In the dry weather they range in the jungle, and often sleep under the trees; and in the wet season they creep into the caves, or under overhanging rocks in the mountain. As they are never far from home, their wives and children go along with them when they hunt. Their women are generally able to travel immediately after confinement. Those with whom I spoke had no knowledge of hours, no names for days, and knew nothing of weeks, months, years, etc. There were six men, but none of them could tell me their number. If they are told to do any thing in six or seven days' time, as many knots must be made on something, one of which they loose each day; and when the last is loosed they do the thing. As they are now situated little can be done for them. In the estimation of some persons, it would not be worth the while for a missionary to take a ten days' journey of more than a hundred miles, for the sake of preaching to a hundred or a hundred and fifty people, scattered in the jungle, when he might, during the same time, find ten thousand people within a few miles of his own house; yet it is a pity that these woodmen should be left without a knowledge of Christ, and especially when they are so willing to be taught the plan of salvation through him, and, apparently, to embrace the gospel. On the 7th of January, 1841, Mr. Stott writes that he had baptized twenty-six persons since September, twenty-two of whom were converts from heathenism. And again on the 8th of April, 1841, he writes— I am thankful to say, that the Lord is still mercifully "working with us," and bringing heathens to a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus. Since the date of my last letter I have baptized ninety-two persons, all heathens, except three or four. Sixty-four of these are men and boys from Bintenne, (Veddahs,) the place I visited last year. Most of these have wives and children, who also wish to embrace and profess Christianity. I intend to go in a few weeks to baptize them. Several other parties of these wild men are inquiring about Christianity, so that I hope in a few months we shall have several hundreds of baptisms among them. Indeed, according to present appearances, all the Veddahs and Singalese of this district will embrace the religion of Christ. The work among the Tamul people also is in a very prosperous state. The Roman catholics are likewise in a state of agitation. Even the Mohammedans are aroused to discuss the sub I talked to them about their souls, and I trust that some light was communicated to their dark minds. I afterwards gave to each of the women a portion of cloth. In the evening we ascended Kittool mountain, and had a fine view of theject of Christianity, and some of them seriously surrounding country. 7. I had long conversations with the people in the evening. All were attentive and seemed very much interested. One man, a tom-tom beater, came to take his leave, to go to his own village; and with great earnestness and sincerity said, "I am an old man and cannot expect to live long what must I do to be saved? I shall, most likely, never see you again, and I want to know what I must do to get to heaven." I explained as simply as possible the character of the true God, and the plan of salvation through Christ. 10. In the morning I left for Umany, twelve and a half miles. We passed by several mountaius. In one of them, called Kadupari Mali, we met with seven families of Veddahs, and saw their dwellings in the mountains, which are nothing more than the overhanging rocks. They sit and lie on the ground; their beds are a few leaves; they eat with their fingers, with leaves for their dishes; they have nothing more than their neighbors, the beasts, except a small piece of cloth, and that is a very small piece indeed. 13. In the morning I reached home in health and safety. My principal object in this journey was, for once at least, to preach Christ to the Veddahs, and to see if schools could be established among them, and if means could be adopted for at least occasionally preaching the gospel to them. VOL. XXXVIII. doubt whether Mohammed was a true prophet or not. I have challenged their priests and also the catholic and heathen priests, to a public discussion of the merits of their respective religions; but none of them have come forward as yet. They do not like to bring their systems to the light. This shakes the confidence of the people, and disposes them to hear the gospel of Christ. Our members are doing exceedingly well. Several who nine months ago were in heathen darkness can now testify of the pardoning love of God, and are going about from village to village, and from house to house, warning sinners to flee from the wrath to come. This they do of their own accord. And their humility and zeal are worthy of Christianity in its purest form. This gives me great confidence, that the time is not far distant when the whole of this people shall be brought to God. CHURCH MISSION IN SOUTHERN INDIA IN the number of this work for December last, page 504, some brief account was given of the state of the mission of the Church Missiouary Society in parts of Southern India. From the Missionary Register further extracts are taken and inserted below. 9 |