this people? Is it that of the English nation, or of some other nation?" "

"Tritchinopoly, September 5th. "The first church built by Swartz is at this place. It is called Christ's Church, and is a large building, capable of containing perhaps two thousand people. The aged Missionary, the Rev. Mr. Pohle, presides over this church, and over the native congregations at this place. Christianity flourishes; but I found that here, as at other places, there is a famine of Bibles.' The Jubilee was celebrated on the 9th of July, being the hundredth year from the arrival of the messengers of the Gospel. On this occasion their venerable Pastor preached from Matt. xxviii, 19; 'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.' At this station, there are about a thousand English troops. Mr. Poble being a German, does not speak English very well; but he is revereneed for his piety by the English; and both officers and men are glad to hear the religion of their country preached in any way. On the Sunday morning, I preached in Christ's Church to a full assembly, from these words, 'For we have seen his Star in the East, and are come to worship him.' Indeed what I had seen in these provinces rendered this text the most appropriate I could select. Next day some of the English soldiers came to me, desiring to know how they might procure Bibles. It is a delightful thing,' said one of them, 'to hear our own religion preached by our own countrymen.' I am informed that there are at this time above twenty English regiments in India, and not one of them has a chaplain. The men live without religion, and then they bury each other. O England, England, it is not for thine own goodness that Providence giveth thee the treasures of India!

"I proceed hence to visit the Christian churches in the provinces of Madura, and Tinavelly.'

"The friends of Christianity have had it in their power to afford some aid to the Christian churches in Tanjore. On the 1st of January of the present year (1810,) the Rev. Mr. Brown preached a Sermon at Calcutta, in which he represented the petition of the Hindoos for Bibles. A plain statement of the fact was sufficient to open the hearts of the public. A subscription was immediately set on foot, and Lieut. General Hewitt, Commander in Chief, then Deputy

Governor in Bengal, subscribed 2501. The chief officers of government, and the principal inhabitants of Calcutta, raised the subscription, in a few days, to the sum of 1000l. sterling. Instructions were sent to Mr. Kolhoff, to buy up all the copies of the Tamul Scriptures; to distribute them at a small price amongst the natives, and to order a new edition. to be printed off without loss of time."*

Abstract of the Report in 1807.

"Mr. Pozold reports, that Mr. Henry Horst, who for many years had been employed in the concerns of the Mission, had at length received the ordination of the Lutheran Church, from the hands of the worthy senior of the Society's Missions, the Rev. Mr. Pohle, with the consent and approbation of the brethren Kolhoff and Holzberg, and himself. Mr. Horst,' he observes, 'certainly deserves it, being a man of considerable literary attainments, as well as of good moral character, for which he is greatly esteemed at Tanjore. Our excellent brother Kolhoff bestoweth great praise on him, and seems to be one heart and one soul with him. They are now laboring together, in the vineyard of the Lord, with an exemplary zeal and activity.'

"The notitia transmitted by Mr. Pezold, for 1806, are as follows.

At

"At Vepery, in the Malabar congregation, 25 infants and 9 adults baptized, 4 marriages, and on Easter-day 102 communicants: In the English and Portuguese congregation, 36 children baptized, 17 marriages, and 96 communicants. Negapatam, 15 children of European extraction, 1 Malabar child and 2 Malabar adults, baptized; 12 marriages; 65 Portuguese and 19 Malabar communicants. At Sadras, &c. 7 children of European extraction baptized, and 7 communi

cants.

"The Rev. Mr. Pohle, in a letter dated at Trichinapally, the 16th of February, 1807, states, that in the course of the preceding year there had been in that mission, and at Din. degal, 21 baptisms, among which were 5 of adult Heathens, and 3 converts from popery, 4 marriages, 159 communicants, about 50. English scholars, and about 30 Malabar scholars. "The Trichinapally congregation of Portuguese and Malabars amounted to 334 souls which, together with about 30

Buchanan's Christian Researches, third edition, pp. 125-140.

at Dindegal and Madura, made 364. As officiating chaplain of the garrison of Trichinapally, he had had 32 baptims, and 18 marriages, the communicants having been 13. Since the departure of the Rev. Mr. Ball, one of the chaplains of the East India Company, he had continued to officiate alone. His fellow-laborers, in the mission, were two English schoolmasters, three catechists, and three Malabar schoolmasters, who were in training to be made catechists. The Christians at Dindegal and Madura had been frequently visited by the catechists, who also frequently announced the Gospel of Christ to the natives. Mr. Pohle considered his mission, on the whole, to be on a promising footing. He had been successively favored with visits from Messrs. Kerr of Madras, Buchanan of Calcutta, and John of Tranquebar, with whom he had had important conversations, concerning the English missions, and the dissemination of Christian knowledge in

the East.

"Dr Buchanan, who had had opportunities of personally knowing Mr. Henry Horst, had much encouraged the idea of his ordination; which had taken place by the hands of Mr. Pohle, and his co-ordinators Mr. Kolhoff and Mr. Holzberg, on the first Sunday of the preceding Advent, at Tanjore, in the manner Mr Kolhoff, and the country priest Sattianaden, had received their ordination, through the hands of Father Swartz. Mr. Pohle therefore strongly recommended the reception of Mr. Horst as the Society's missionary, and that they would grant to him the salary of a missionary; to which recommendation the Society have acceded.

"Mr. Pohle mentions, that they had celebrated a jubilee, on the 13th of July, 1806, in commemoration of the arrival of the two first protestant missionaries at Tranquebar, on the 9th of July, 1706, with thanksgivings and praises to God, and a suitable sermon from Matt. xxviii. 19.

"He expresses his wish that the mother mission at Tranquebar may continue to be remembered for good by the Hon. Society, as it still supplies the daughter missions with books, treatises, &c. from its press.

"The Rev. Mr. Rottler, one of the Danish missionaries at Tranquebar, who was employed after Mr. Gericke's death as the Society's missionary at Vepery, has returned to his former station at Tranquebar.

"The Rev. the Danish missionaries, in a letter dated at ' Tranquebar, March 2, 1807, acknowledge the arrival of the

Society's annual presents, shipped for them the preceding year, and express grateful thanks to their benefactors for the same.

"Through two years past, they had labored under heavy afflictions, that had affected them both in body and mind, the particulars of which they would rather pass over, than relate in detail. They only mention, that Mr. John's sickly state of health; during that period, had prevented them from writing, and giving the usual communications of their mission to the Society.

"Mr. John had resolved on a voyage to England and Denmark, in consequence of medical advice; and in order to give a clear and oral account of the missions to the respective superiors, he had previously visited Tanjore, Trichinapally, and the Christian congregations in the country, where he had had many conferences with the brethren, in the view of preserving and promoting the objects of the missions, and encouraging, together with the Christian religion, civilization and industry amongst the Christians, and particularly in the mission schools; and he had had much pleasure in finding his excellency the Maha Rajah, the English Resident Major Blackburn, and at Madras Lord William Bentinck, cordially inclined to aid these good designs, where opportunities should occur.

"Mr. John, however, finding difficulties in getting a passage, and that his complaints returned with greater violence, found it necessary to return to Tranquebar, where, in October, he had providentially arrived by sea. Since then, he had been enabled to retake his share in the charge of the mission, the duties of which had chiefly fallen on Mr. Cammerer, who had, however, been faithfully assisted by Mr. Schreyvogal in the Church, and in the schools of the Malabar and Portuguese congregations. In both, the increase in the years 1805 and 6 was 249, amongst whom were 30 Heathens and 4 Roman catholics. Their marriages had been 65, communicants 2,240, and the number of school children, exclusive of those in the country, 150.

"In consequence of the scarcity of paddy, they had been obliged to return many school children to their parents, and to refuse many who were brought for reception. Some enemies too had united to disturb the established order of the mission, to grieve the missionaries, to ruin the Catechists and Elders, and to seduce a part of the Christians; but they

report, with gratitude to God, that these schemes had been confounded, and that the better part of their Christians had acknowledged the value of enjoying the means of grace; and their esteem for those, who had their spiritual and bodily welfare at heart, had rather increased than diminished; and instances of true piety, on the occasion, had also increased. Some new arrangements had been made to encourage industry and civilization amongst the Christians and school children. The latter were directed to occupy their minds by learning in the forenoon; and in the afternoon, their hands and feet, by cultivating the school yards and grounds adjacent with different vegetables, which heretofore were bought at the market. The several Christian families were encourged to do the same on the spots next to their houses, and were assisted, as far as possible, by having wells dug for them, and by being furnished with the necessary utensils. The Catechists and Christians in the country were continually directed and encouraged to make the best use possible of the ground granted by government to the chapels and houses, through the generous endeavors of that inestimable friend of mankind, and of their country, Mr. Charles Harris; whose removal from the collectorship they, with the inhabitants in general, and particularly the poor, most keenly lament. Of the character of this gentleman, they speak in the highest terms. The catechists had been encouraged to practice vaccination, which they had done gratuitously to a great extent in various districts, looking for their reward from above. The names of many hundreds of poor children, whom they had vaccinated, had been brought to the missionaries, and in no instance does the experiment appear to have failed.

"The cultivation of potatoes having been very successfully introduced in some of the more remote and inner parts. of the country, and a trial also having been successfully made nearer the sea-coast, they entertained the hope that similar attempts amongst their Christians, which were to be pursued when the hot season and the rains were over, would not fail of success.

"They would not cease to shew and testify to the public, that the mission and Christianity were not hurtful to the interest of the country, but beneficial in every respect, and worthy of being preserved, encouraged, and promoted.