Messieurs S on sending Mr. O— advise, if we should conclude and P and A O it will be best for Mr. your influence he may on their proposed missions, to wait upon you, as we hope by be furnished with necessaries for the support of his mission; but if supplies from that quarter should fail, they will risque the expence themselves, till supplies may be had elsewhere. We have noth O, my dear Sir, what a master we serve! ing to do but to wait the notices of his pleasure, and comply with them, or rather with the doing, and bear him witness, that he performs all things for us. How blessed are all they that trust in him! and commit all their ways and works to him! You know very well the peace and joy from this source, which no man can take away. I begin to see how reasonable it is to trust in the Lord forever, and upon what just grounds our Saviour says "take no thought." and a little glimpse I find sufficient to keep my mind quite calm in a most stormy and tempestuous season. My heart is with you. I have almost grieved that I could not have another interview. But so the great Governor orders it, and I believe it to be well. Dear brother, make business of praying for Yours, in the dearest, sweetest bonds, July 6. This has lain by till now. I have the pleasure to inform you, that this week the Commissioners have been together, and formed and voted to send Mr. Occum, provided the London Commissioners will release him from their service, and have ordered me to write them. I hope they will view the advantage to the cause, from bringing Mr. Occum into the same plan with our other missionaries and school masters (to be sent next spring, if supplies for them may be had, viz. the two senior Indians of the school) in such a light as that they will readily yield to his being under our direction, and will also be willing to continue to him the £30 they have voted. A is not yet in pay, but his mission is referred to a committee, when a door opens. The most of the Commissioners are in high spirits to prosecute, to effect, &c. Yours of the 15th March with the commission, came safe to hand about three weeks ago. I have also received the books safe, and gratefully acknowledge the favour, both to me and the school. Your commissioners met and formed last Wednesday; and I feel my hands strengthened, and heart encouraged thereby; and account it a great token of God's favour towards the general design. For though they cannot release me from the main care and burden of the school, yet they are with me, and friendly enough to lend a helping hand; and especially, to embrace every favourable opportunity, to send or dispose of missionaries, as divine Providence shall direct, and point out the way for it. And my hopes of a harvest in the pagan wilderness are greater than ever. Two of my Mohawk boys, I am well satisfied, have been savingly brought home to Christ, since they came to me, and I have much hopes of another. One of these, who came last, while he was a savage, and I could talk with him only by an interpreter, appeared to be under great awakenings, and was comforted the winter before last, and has behaved in a christian manner ever since; yet not enough acquainted with our language, till of late, to communicate much that he felt or knew. About three weeks ago, he appeared to have a great revival of religious affections-expressed a longing desire to be with Christ-seemed full of love to the people of God, and compassion and pity towards his own nation. He continued in a humble, calm, peaceful frame till last Saturday; he went with his schoolmates to walk and divert themselves in a river, about two miles and a half off; immediately on coming out of the water, he was seized with a violent pain in his breast and side, to that degree that he could not stand, and seemed just expiring: they brought him home in this distress, which continued about five hours; all which time he appeared with a smile on his countenance, occa sioned by the sense he had of the reality and glory of things spiritual. His soul seemed reaching and stretching to depart and be with Christ; and he himself and all about him were apprehensive that God was about to grant him his desire. He could speak but little; but what he did say was expressive of greater joy than ever he had in his life--but God mercifully removed his disorder, and a sweet serene calmness yet remains in his mind. This is the more remarkable, as he appeared, when he first came, and for several months after, the most unlikely to be fitted for usefulness, that I have ever taken in hand; insomuch that I had, for some time, determined to embrace the first opportunity to send him back to his own nation. He thirsts after knowledge, and is very diligent in improving his time and all advantage to obtain it--and who knows what God designs for him and by him? We should be glad to see a charter granted to the Honorable 32 Society in Scotland, or any formulas which you may think use Yours of March 10, I received, and since that the duplicate, with the chest of books and the globes all safe, and my heart is full of gratitude for the favour of your animating letters, and for your, and your friend's kindness to my school, the Lord reward you and them with the richer blessings of his covenant. Please to present my com. pliments in the most kind and grateful manner to all those, who assisted in it. I would write those whom you name in paryou ticular; but they must accept for excuse, my want of time for it. And I think they would readily do it, if they knew how much crowded I am. In particular give my warmest love to those pious souls whom you do not name, and who, you say, had little else but their old books to contribute. They have indeed fully shewn their good will to the Redeemer's cause, and their desire to edify and comfort others, by the same means by which they themselves have been comforted of God, and which they justly esteemed a rich treasure. They have shewn what they would do for Christ, if it were in their power. Tell them they have melted my heart. I love them in the bottom of my soul. I expect to know them all by and by, and if by no other means, I shall know them by their account, when the faithful register of it shall exhibit it to public view, and they are filled with surprise that he has estimated what their love to him accounted so small, by the same rule as he did the small pittance, which the poor widow cast into the treasury, and by which also he lets us know that a cup of cold water given in the name of a disciple shall be estimated-then, I doubt not, I shall hear the account of their books, each one his volume sent across the Atlantic, and then see the eternal rewards which the grace of God will confer upon such. As for the £100 of which you write, my heart blesses the pious donor, and if he chooses to confine it to one of the purposes which you mention, and not to improve it for the support of those missionaries, I believe it had better rest a little while where it is, till it be determined where the school will be fixed. Perhaps the success of Gen. Lyman's suit will determine that; though there are some objections against carrying the School among the Indians. A neighbouring parish have bidden £500, our currency, equal to £375 sterling, to have it fixed there; and whenever the place shall be determined, that £100 before mentioned, will be very necessary to accommodate the same with lands. If these youth should proceed next spring, according to our hopes, they will need, preparatory to their business, a number of spelling-books, copies, catechisms, testaments, some bibles, paper, penknives, small jack-knives, and other trifles to allure. the children, and if any see fit to send a few blankets and any other clothing for these missionaries, it will save expense here, and be as acceptable as any thing. I suppose it will be best for them to be able to appear both in the habit of Indians and English, as occasion shall be. To be sure it will be safest for them, if they should travel through tribes who are not friendly to the English, to go in an Indian habit. |