time: he told them, moreover, to remove their fetish-house somewhere else, if they pleased to do so.

"Aug. 12.-The chapel of Ikijà being completed, I went out this afternoon to open it. Ogubonna was, from the time of its building, much interested in the work: he was constantly out, and saw after it as if it were his own dwelling. To-day, though much distracted by rumours of war, and other business of the country, yet he did not forget the time the chapel was to be opened. He was the first in it, and his two little boys, who attend our school, both dressed in new white calico, were sitting at his feet. The ringing of the bell soon collected a congregation, and I was thus enabled to preach from Isa. ii. 1, 2, to upward of 200 persons in our new chapel."

Speaking of another chapel, Mr. Crowther states

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Aug. 12, 1847.-Having received a letter from Messrs. Gollmer and Townsend at Badagry, in which they advised me to secure a spot at once for the Southern District Station, I this morning applied to the elders of Igbein, who at once went out with me to the locality we have fixed upon, and granted me a piece of land sufficient for our purpose.

"Sept. 12.-Having completed the third shed, which we call Owu Chapel, I opened it this afternoon, and preached in it, for the first time in this part of the town, to a numerous congregation. It is very encouraging to see that so many still flock to hear our preaching in all our chapels, as well as in the church at Aké. That the Christian religion will prevail in this country is the feeling of almost all the inhabitants of Abbeokouta: their priests predict it also; and it is my humble belief that the Lord has much people in this place."

Religious Inquirers-Candidates for Baptism. The Rev. H. Townsend writes

to

May 5.-Two priests of Ifa came to me with the question, 'What does the Law of God command?' They have attended our services several times, and appear me much interested in what they have heard. They were induced to attend by one of our candidates, native, who uses every means to induce her country-people to

attend; and being formerly a great worshipper of the gods, her example and precepts have great weight with those to whom she is known. I read to the priests the Ten Commandments, making a few explanatory remarks. "May 8.-To-day my class of candidates was further increased by a young man who applied for admission a few days ago. He expressed a strong desire for instruction, and also his intention of giving up his associates, and war, and kidnapping, in which he had been engaged, and of earning his living by honest means. attended our public services for some time past.

He has

"May 21.-An old man joined our class. He has for some time attended our church, and at length made up his mind to give himself up entirely to God. An old man accompanied him, who came out of curiosity to know what we taught. He, also, had sometimes attended our church; but was not prepared to embrace Christianity. The class, having committed to memory the Lord's Prayer in their vernacular tongue, had commenced learning the Ten Commandments: we had just commenced the second commandment. In our last meeting this latter old man joined the rest in repeating the words, Thou shalt not make unto thyself any graven image, or the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;" and readily answered, with the others, to the question, 'Who spoke these words?' God.' By teaching them to repeat from memory the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Creed, they will be in possession of a better knowledge of the fundamental truths of Christianity than could be given by mere expositions of Scripture, however simple they might be, and will be in a better position to understand our public preaching; and should any of them be drawn aside from a profession of Christianity, they will not be able to cast off the recollection of the things they have committed to memory, but it will remain with them a witness for God."

On the same subject the following interesting information is given by Mr. Crowther in his letter of September 15:

5

"I am happy to inform you that my mother has been led to see the vanity of worshipping those things which cannot save nor deliver. She has renounced these 'lying vanities,' and is now among the candidates for baptism. In her late illness she manifested truly a disposition which confirms me in my belief that she is sincere. She said, 'If I had been by myself I would have attributed this sickness to this thing or that thing, and would have made sacrifices; but now I have seen the folly of so doing all my hopes are in the Lord Jesus Christ, whom I serve.' She trusts in Him only. My sisters and children are with me: they attend school. I hope the Lord will soon make these also see that in Christ only their help is found. They have cast away their country fashion, and are regular attendants at divine worship. I only wait to see them come forward to enlist themselves as candidates for baptism, and become decided followers of the Lamb."

Agricultural Operations, &c.; their bearing upon

Slave Trade.

the

The importance of this department of the mission can hardly be over-rated, from its probable influence upon the slave-trade. Mr. Crowther writes

"May 30.-I gratefully acknowledge the receipt of 201., a gift from Lady Buxton to encourage agriculture. This came very seasonably to hand. I have given 10%. to Mr. Golmer, to be used in the Badagry district, to stimulate the people there to pursue the cultivation of their land, which they have set about, since last year, with great earnestness.

"The people here are industrious farmers and active traders. They want a model-farm before them, to teach them how to grow cotton, indigo, pepper, and ginger, better, and how to improve their land. They also want a market opened to stimulate them in the culture of these articles. Sugar-cane could be grown here in large quantities, would some persons of capital, interested in

5 Mr. Crowther is a native African, who was converted to Christianity, and ordained a clergyman.

the welfare of Africa, make a trial to manufacture sugar in this country.

"The advantage of abolishing the slave-trade by the cultivation of the land, over any other method which has been hitherto adopted, has been brought to the notice of the friends of Africa by able advocates interested in her welfare. How glad we should be to see steps taken to bring it to practice! I believe there is no place more favourable than that where the chiefs, and a greater part of the people, have already seen the disadvantage of the slave-trade, which they in former times had been most active to engage in."

The following interesting passage is extracted from Mr. Townsend's journal:

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July 12.-I went with Mrs. Townsend to Ogubonna's farm, hoping a little change might be beneficial to her health. The farm is only a short distance outside the town wall, on the side of an isolated rocky hill. The chief, having been informed of our intended visit, was not long in following us thither, thinking that his farm was honoured by our visit. While he was conducting us through his yam-field, he was overheard saying to the overseer of his farm, that no Osha, however famous, would have been believed, if it had prophesied that Europeans would visit his farm; and that he hoped he should be diligent to keep it in order, that it might be worthy our inspection. In one part he had planted a quantity of ginger, called here ground-pepper, which he informed us was in the expectation that European merchants would come to the country and buy it. I commended his endeavours to cultivate an article of European commerce, and hoped his expectations would be realized."

That Christianity is producing a happy effect in mitigating the evils of slavery, is evident from the following incident, narrated by Mr. Townsend, in a letter, dated July 23, 1847:

"A Sierra-Leone man, with his wife and two children, were captured by the chief of Ijayé, while peaceably passing through the town on their way to the interior. He was sold to a dealer, and brought hither to be sold

to the traders. We immediately, on being made acquainted with the matter, informed Sagtria of it, who promised that he would send to Ikumi, the chief of Ijayé, to remonstrate with him; but made this excuse for Ikumi, We did so in Abbeokouta before, but now we dare not. Ikumi has not heard from white men the words we have heard.' 'Softly, softly,' he added, 'when he hears, he will forsake such practices too.' The burden of his excuse is, that he has not been taught better; go and teach him better, and he will forsake such evil practices. On speaking to Ogubonna on the same subject, he made, in substance, the same excuse. He said, 'Ikŭmi has not heard the word of God as we have heard it.' We doubt not that the Parent Committee will feel the weight of these remarks. May the sympathies of England be not confined to the victims of the slave-trade, but extended to those who, through the ignorance that is in them, commit such outrages on humanity!"

Calcutta and North-India Mission.

It is a cause of great thankfulness that the reports from the different stations are of an encouraging nature, and that some special tokens of God's presence with his missionary servants have been vouchsafed. Surely such a result should inspire our hearts with lively gratitude to God, and should encourage us to be "stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord," in the assurance that our labour shall not be "in vain in the Lord."

Agurparah.

Mr. F. J. De Rozario continues at this station, and the following account of the Mission is taken from his Report:

"This year has been, I am thankful to say, another prosperous season in all the departments of labour. The number of communicants in the Church is double that of last year. The Spirit of Christ seems to be working in the hearts of most of the youths in the higher classes of the English school; the desire for biblical instruction has been great; the open declaration even of young boys in favour of Christianity is remarkable; while the actual