his wife and send the other away. He said, "That is very hard indeed, for I love them both, and they are sisters." He asked again and again, why he might not have more than one wife, now he was a Christian? It was plain that he was struggling with his feelings, but he decided aright, and was baptized. His example had great influence over others, as he had been a conjuror.

You will be wondering where Mr Youd was all this time. You know he went on a journey up the country to visit the Indians; at another time I will tell you all about his doings there, for he staid at Pinara and other places, and only came back to the Grove on a visit to Mr Bernau. For the present, however, we will remain at Bartica Grove.

66

Scraps of

WHY DID NOT YOU COME BEFORE?"

A MISSIONARY was once reading the Scriptures to a group of heathen-it was the first time they had ever heard the word of life, and so interested were they with the story of Christ's life and death, that, whenever the missionary stopped, they clamoured for him to go on. When he had read the verse at the close of the Gospel of Matthew-"Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature," the old chief rose from his seat and said, "Read that again." The missionary repeated the verse. How long is it since Jesus Christ gave that command ?" asked the chief. He was told it was more than eighteen hundred years ago. "What!" cried he, "and has it taken you eighteen hundred years to obey it?" Why did you not come to me before? When I give an order to my people they obey me directly. Why have you been so long in obeying Jesus Christ? You Christians don't believe your own Bible." And so saying, he and all his people

66

all Sorts.

went away, refusing to hear another word from the missionary.

What shall we say to God for all the millions of souls who are perishing for lack of knowledge? Shall we do nothing for them? Then verily their blood will God require at our hands.

WHERE THERE IS A WILL THERE IS A WAY.

ONE day an old negro, walking on crutches, came to a missionary, saying,

66

Massa, me have heard you preach; me should like to learn to read that book." The missionary looked at the old man and said, "You are rather an old scholar." Never mind massa," was the answer; 66 me will try." He was told there was no place for him where he could stay, but the stable. He replied, "Massa, me content with that; me like to know more of that book." He was taught his letters, and though he only got a lesson now and then, to the missionary's astonishment, he was able to read tolerably well in six

months. He was too old and infirm to work, so he would sit poring over his New Testament all the day long. Sometimes he would come and say, "Massa, this word too hard for me; cut it up." He was so eager to tell others of the good things he had found in "the book," that he might often be seen with a group of negroes round him listening while he read the word of God. He often wished he had known the Saviour when he was younger, for he had missed a great deal of happiness.

Do my young

readers believe this, that every year they keep away from Christ, they miss a year's happiness?

A LIVING SACRIFICE.

IN a portion of the southern territory from which the red man has now been driven I once attended a meeting held in the wild forest. The theme on which the preacher dwelt, and which he illustrated with surpassing beauty and grandeur, was "Christ and him crucified." He spoke of the Good Shepherd who came into the world to seek and to save the lost. He told how this Saviour met the rude buffetings of the heartless soldiers. He drew a picture of Gethsemane, and the unbefriended stranger who wept there. He pointed to him as he hung bleeding upon the cross.

The congregation wept. Soon there was a slight movement in the assembly, and a tall son of the forest, with tears on his red cheeks, approached the pulpit, and said, "Did Jesus die for me-die for poor Indian? Me have no lands to give to Jesus-the white man

39

take them away; me give Him my dog and my rifle." The minister told him Jesus could not accept these gifts. "Me give Jesus my dog, my rifle, and my blanket; poor Indian, he got no more to give he give Jesus all." The minister replied that Christ could not accept them. The poor ignorant, but humbled child of the forest, bent his head in sorrow, and meditated. He raised his head once more, fixed his eye on the preacher, and said"Here is poor Indian-will Jesus have him?" A thrill of joy ran through the souls of minister and people as this fierce son of the wilderness now sat, in his right mind, at the feet of Jesus. The Spirit had done His work; and he who had been so poor received the earnest of the inheritance.-Children's Friend.

LITTLE RAJEE.

THERE was once a little Hindu girl named Rajee. She went to a missionary's school, but she would not eat with her schoolfellows, because she belonged to a higher caste than they did. As she lived at the school, her mother brought her food every day, and Rajee sat under a tree to eat it. At the end of two years she told her mother that she wished to turn from idols, and serve the living God. Her mother was much troubled at hearing this, and begged her child not to bring disgrace on the family by becoming a Christian. But Rajee was anxious to save her precious soul. She cared no longer for her caste, for she knew that all she had been taught about it was deceit and folly; therefore, one day she

sat down and ate with her schoolfellows. When her mother heard of Rajee's conduct, she ran to the school in a rage, and seizing her little daughter by the hair of her head, began to beat her severely. Then she hastened to the priests, to ask them whether the child had lost her caste for ever. The priests replied, "Has the child got her new teeth?" " No," said the mother. "Then we can cleanse her, and when her new teeth comes she will be as pure as ever, But you must pay a good deal of money for the cleansing." Were they not cunning priests? and covetous priests too?

The money was paid, and Rajee was brought home against her will. Dreadful sufferings awaited the poor child. The cleansing was a cruel business. The priests burned the child's tongue. This was one of their cruelties. When little Rajee was suffered to go back to

O гnou, my soul, forget no more
The Friend who all thy sorrows bore,
Let every idol be forgot;
But, O my soul, forget Him not!
Jesus for thee a body takes,

Thy guilt assumes, thy fetters breaks,
Discharging all thy dreadful debt;
And canst thou e'er such love forget?
Renounce thy works and ways with grief,
And fly to this most sure relief;

Price 6d. doz., or 3/6 100.

Nor Him forget who left His throne,
And for thy life gave up His own.
Infinite truth and mercy shine
In Him; and He himself is thine.
And canst thou, then, with sin beset,
Such grace-such matchless charms forget!

O no! till life itself depart,

His name shall cheer and warm thy heart;
And lisping this, from earth I'll rise,
And join the chorus in the skies.

SOME years ago, it was very common to hear people ask " What good have missionaries done?" and even there are some persons who will not take the trouble to read what mission

June 1854.

now

aries have been doing among the heathen, and these wise men gravely shake their heads and say, "Missions are a failure, they do no good." The best way of finding out whether

42

missions have done any good in a country, would be to see what the people were like before missionaries visited them, and what they are like now. Listen to me, then, while I tell you of the Sandwich Islands as they used to be.

The famous Captain Cook discovered these islands in 1778. At that time the natives were extremely ignorant. "They had never seen a ship, nor a white man, and they fancied that there were no other countries besides their own, nor any people in the world but themselves. The sailors who first went there were greatly amused by the odd ideas of those simple people about the new and strange things they saw; for they supposed that the ships were floating islands, and that the masts were trees growing upon them. As they looked at them from the shore, they cried out with wonder that a forest had moved into the sea. When

6

some of the boldest of them paddled off in their canoes towards the ship, everything they saw made them almost wild with wonder. Some of the sailors were eating water-melons, and as they were red, the natives declared that they were feeding upon the raw flesh of men. Others wei e smoking cigars, and these they called fire-gods,' or gods of the volcano. Having seen them put their hands into their pockets, they told their friends on shore that the strange people had doors in their sides for property, openings that went far down their bodies, into which they thrust their hands, and drew out knives, and iron, and beads, and cloth, and nails, and everything else; and that their bodies were full of treasure.

But they seemed to be astonished most of all at the cannon, and the fireworks which were let off after it was dark, and which convinced them more than anything else that their visitors were not men, but gods. They therefore called Captain Cook Lono, which was the name of a fabled deity whom they greatly feared, and who, they believed, had now come amongst them." However, on his next visit he was killed by them in a quarrel.

The Sandwich Islands were afterwards visited by many trading vessels from different countries. But their intercourse with white men did the natives more harm than good, for they only imitated the vices of the foreigners.

The first missionaries went from America in 1820. They landed at the largest island of the group, Owhyhee, or Hawaii, as it is called now, the very same island where Captain Cook was murdered. Let us see what kind of people the Hawaiians were by this time. Their appearance was so wild and shocking that, as the missionaries looked at them, they exclaimed, "Can these be men? can these be women?" And the ship's officer who went on shore before the missionaries landed, said, when he came back, Well, if I never before saw brutes in the shape of men, I have seen them this morning!" and then, turning to the missionaries, he added, "You can never live among such a people as this; we shall be obliged to take you back with us."

66

And did the missionaries go back to America? No, they had counted the cost, and were quite willing to lay