was ground to hope, that he was instrumental in plucking some of them as brands from the fire.* In 1757, there were five different plantations, on which Caries preached the gospel to the negroes; the number of the baptized amounted to seventy-seven, and besides these, there were about four hundred catechumens. Encouraged by these auspicious circumstances, several other Brethren were sent to the island; but these being of different sentiments from the first missionaries, and apprehending that many of the Negroes had been too hastily baptized, introduced a system of greater strictness, and obliged the catechumens to wait longer for baptism. By this means, most of the Negroes were so disheartened, that they drew back; and the harmony of the missionaries was so much interrupted, that they almost desisted from their labours.† After the mission had remained for several years in a very languishing state, it experienced a new revival in 1764. The Brethren engaged in it, being now united in their views with regard to the method of evangelizing the negroes, their labours began to be crowned with considerable success. Such of the slaves as had formerly been baptized, now returned to them; the number of their hearers was greatly augmented, and many of them appeared to be much impressed by the word. The Brethren had now the care of the slaves on nine different plantations; and in one of these, where, in the beginning of 1767, they had scarcely a hundred hearers, before the end of that year, the audience had increased to five hundred. Indeed, the number of negroes baptized in that and the following year, amounted to upwards of two hundred and fifty.‡ But, pleasing as were the prospects of the mission at that period, its progress was speedily checked; and for many years past, it has been in a very languishing state. Of late, indeed, some of the principal planters in Jamaica have given the Brethren considerable encouragement, and have under† Ibid. • Crantz's History of the United Brethren. Ibid. taken to provide for the support of more missionaries; but still the work is attended with little success. In 1804, fifty years from the commencement of the mission, the whole number of the negroes baptized by the Brethren, on the island, amounted only to nine hundred and thirty-eight.* ARTICLE V. ANTIGUA.t IN 1756, Samuel Isles, an English brother, who had laboured for eight years in St. Thomas, went to Antigua, with the view of beginning a mission on the island. Having made known his design, he obtained permission from some of the planters to instruct the Negroes on their estates, and in the course of a few months, he had the pleasure of baptizing several of his swarthy hearers.‡ In 1761, a piece of land was purchased in the town of St. John's, and a church erected upon it; but after he had laboured about three years longer, he departed this life, to the great loss of the poor negroes. He was succeeded, indeed, by a new missionary; but he also soon followed him to the grave; and though other Brethren were afterwards sent to Antigua, yet their labours were attended with little success. It was a very painful circumstance to them, that most of the negroes whom they baptized were sent to other islands, and thus were deprived of the means of further instruction.§ But dark as were the prospects of the Brethren in Antigua for many years, the cloud was at length dispelled, and the dreary night issued in a glorious morning. This, in fact, has long been the most flourishing of all their missions. • Crantz's History of the United Brethren. Period. Acc. vol. iii. p. 285, 455, 436, 441; vol. v. p. 15. † Antigua island in the West Indies, is about 40 miles north of Guadaloupe, being 20 miles long, and the same nearly in breadth, in about 17 deg. 3 min. N. lat. and from 61 deg. 50 min. to 62 deg. 14 min. W. long. St. John's on the W. side is the capitalMalham's Gazetteer. # Crantz's History of the United Brethren. Ibid. From the commencement of the work in 1756, to the opening of the new chapel at St. John's in 1773, a period of seventeen years, only two hundred and ninety-five negroes were baptized. But about that time, a general awakening began among the slaves, and has not only continued ever since, but has, of late years, been even on the increase. From 1773, until April 1805, the Brethren baptized thirteen thousand seven hundred and ninety-six of the negroes, including both adults and children; and of these there were no fewer than six thousand two hundred and twenty-eight within the last twelve years, making the whole number, from the commencement of the mission, amount to fourteen thousand and ninety-one.* The Brethren have now three settlements in the island of Antigua, St. John's, Gracehill, and Gracebay, the last of which was formed only a few years ago. In April 1809, the congregations in these several places consisted of the following numbers: The total amount of these numbers is 10,814; but it must be observed, that in this statement are not included the new people at Gracehill, the second settlement; and it appears, that at the period to which we refer, the Brethren's congregations in Antigua, consisted of no fewer than 11,824 members.t * Period. Acc. vol. ii. p. 560; vol. iii. p. 223, 282, 398; vol. v. p. 197. † Period. Acc. vol. iv. p. 381. It is an important circumstance, that the prejudices which many entertained against the negroes learning to read, have, of late years, begun to subside in this island. This is an acquisition which many of these poor creatures are so cager to make, that, notwithstanding the unfavourable nature of their situation as slaves, they have contrived to find means of learning to read, and even used to steal time, for this purpose, from those hours which others devoted to sleep. Encouraged by these circumstances, the Brethren, in June, 1810, opened a school in one of their settlements, for teaching the negro children. They began with about eighty scholars, but in the course of a month the number increased to upwards of six hundred. It was kept only on the Lord's day; and the elder children were employed in teaching the younger on a plan similar to the Lancasterian system.* Extensive, however, as has been the success of the Brethren in Antigua, the history of this mission affords none of those striking incidents, which distinguish their labours in many other quarters, where they have been attended with much less success. Living under the protection of the British government, and encouraged by the white inhabitants of the island, they have not had those dangers to encounter, nor those difficulties to surmount, to which many of their fellow missionaries, in barbarous uncivilized countries have been exposed. In general, they have proceeded in a calm uniform course, daily performing the ordinary duties of their office among the negroes, dispensing the word of life to them, catechising the children, seeking after the wanderers, visiting the sick, and administering comfort to them in their dying moments. Such circumstances as these are of the most important nature, yet from their ordinary occurrence, they can afford but little interest to the reader. Ibid. vol v. p. 40. Report of the British and Foreign Bible Society for 1810, Appendix, p. 5. In the island of Antigua, there has not even been that mortality among the missionaries which has occurred in some others of the West-India islands. Notwithstanding the size of their congregations, yet from the commencement of the mission in 1756 to 1803, a period of forty-seven years, only thirty-seven Brethren and Sisters were employed in this island; a small number compared with what were found necessary in many other quarters.* Though the United Brethren need the testimony of no man to the importance and utility of their labours; yet as the authority of Bryan Edwards, esq. the historian of the British West-Indies, may have some influence with persons of a certain description, who are prejudiced against missionary exertions in general, we shall here subjoin a short extract from the work of that writer: "It is very much," says he "to the honour of the legislature of Antigua that it presented to the sister islands the first example of amelioration of the criminal law respecting negro slaves, by giving the accused party the benefit of trial by jury, and allowing in the case of capital conviction, four days between the time of sentence and execution. And it is still more to the honour of Antigua, that its inhabitants have encouraged, in a particular manner, the laudable endeavours of certain pious men, who have undertaken, from the purest and best motives, to enlighten the minds of the negroes, and to lead them to the knowledge of religious truth. In the report of the lords of the committee of council on the slave trade, is an account of the labours of the society known by the name of the Unitas Fratrum, commonly called Moravians, in this truly glorious pursuit; from which it appears, that their conduct in this business displays such sound judgment, breathes such a spirit of genuine Christianity, and has been attended with such eminent success, as to entitle its Brethren and missionaries to the most favourable reception from every man whom the accidents of fortune have invested with power over * Period. Acc. vol. iii. p. 225, |