of very good silver. The inhabitants of Siphanto are mild, affable and laborious; they speak very harmonious Greek, and a little more pure than most other islanders: they have a large town, surrounded with walls, like a fortress, and eight large villages, in the whole containing about six thousand inhabitants; their exports are principally cotton goods and earthenware.

The Greek Bishop resides at Siphanto, and he has eight other Islands in his Diocese-Serpho, Miconi, Amergo, Rio, Staupalia, Naphi, Siehino, and Policandro. This Prelate is about forty years of age; a man of abilities who has a great taste for his own language. There are fortyfive Parish Churches in the Island, besides a great many Chapels, which you see scattered here and there through the country; they are neat, and at a distance have a pretty appearance; and on the festival of the saints whose names they bear, Mass is said in them, and this devotion of offering the Holy Sacrifice brings a good congregation. There are also five monasteries here-three of men and two of women. The principal one is in the centre of the Island: it is well built, and its Church, which is dedicated to our blessed Lady, is very neat. In the mo nastery are twelve Caloyers, and five secular Priests.The second monastery has but four Caloyers, and is dedicated to holy Elias, and is situated on the summit of a very high mountain. The third is deserted, because it has no revenue at present. In Greece the bishop is chosen from amongst the religious, and if it should happen that a secular priest is chosen, he would, before his consecration, be obliged to take the habit of some order, and make his profession in a monastery.-The convents of the women are also in the country; there are thirty of the kind of nuns they have, in one of them, and twenty in the other, they are all pretty old, and live by their labour; they are virtuous and pious, but probably would be much more so, if the folks abroad had not leave to go in when they chose, and to bring them out: yet though they have no cloister, they have not received the least insult from the time of their establishment. The infidels have in this place, a high respect for women's dwellings; and they look upon it as an enormous crime to be guilty of the least impoliteness towards them,

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The Latin rite is nearly obsolete in Siphanto; it is used only in two small churches; one of them is in the town ; it is dedicated to St Anthony, and is served by a Vicar, who is dependant on the Latin Bishop of Milo; the other is in the Country, and is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. There are only six Latin families in the Island, and they are strangers; this was not formerly the case, the family of Gozadini which governed the island, all adhered to the Latin rite, but since the invasion by the Turks the descendants of this family, as well as those of most others, have gradually degenerated, and now they all follow the Greek

rite.

It was on the 24th of July that father Luchon and I, together with Mr. Deslandes who accompanied us for the purpose of performing surgical operations which he under stands well, arrived here; after we landed we waited upon. the Greck Bishop for permission to exercíse our ministerial functions. He received us at first coldly enough, but afterwards no one could treat us more kindly- Previous to our departure from Constantinople, his grace the Archbishop of Spiga, Vicar Patriarchal for the Holy Seethroughout the Patriarchate of Constantinople, had the kindness to give us the most ample and honourable diploma we could wish for, giving us all his powers. Besides Mr.De Feriol, the King's Ambassador to the Sublime Porte, gave us one in his name for the protection of our persons. This worthy mimister equally zealous for religion and the honour of the French name, declared in this to all Turks and others, that we were under the protection of his Majesty. And moreover not only declared that we were to be permitted to go and come, and remain, when and where we thought proper; but he also besought them to give us any assistauce which we might need.

We looked upon the town as the best place for us to open the mission. We had taken care beforehand to buy whatever provisions we wanted, so that we should be burthensome to no one. Those poor people to whom every thing is sold, (even the most common acts of the Ministry) where inexpressibly delighted with our disinterestedConvinced that our sole object was to place them in the way of salvation, they knew not how to express

ness.

their

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their gratitude. We were completely occupied every day during three weeks in preaching to an immense crowd that came from all quarters, in teaching the Christian Doctrine to the children, in regularly visiting the sick and gratui tously distributing medicine. The Bishop himself often came to hear us, and struck with the sentiments of compunction, of which his people gave such striking proofs by the tears which they shed; he often spoke in the most favourable manner of us in presence of the people, and openly exhorted us to labour with all our might for the sanctification of those whom the Lord had committed to his care. This made us to go through the different villages of the Island which we found to be in equal want of assistance is the town was. Father Luchon preached every morning and evening to an immense concourse. The churches were quite too small for the congregations, in consequence of which he was obliged to preach often in the open fields: the silence with which he was heard was interrupted only by the tears and lamentations of the auditory. We passed the rest of the day in teaching the children, visiting the sick and going to the different houses where many families had assembled together to work, there we instructed them in their duties, and solved all their difficulties by way of question and answer, without taking them from their bnsiness. Those private instructions were hardly less useful to them than the public preaching. The frequent use of the Sacraments, from which most of them had been nearly twenty years absent, the change of their condnet, and the reformation of many grievous abuses were the good effects produced by our labours.

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After better than ten weeks spent thus we thought it time to go to some of the neighbouring Islands-At the intimation of our departure those good people crowded round us. Priests, men, women and children, all were crying as if some public calamity had befallen them." You are our father," said they, you are the Angels of our houses and the guides of our Salvation; have pity upon us in the name of Jesus Christ, and do not abandon us.' Those words accompanied with such proofs of sincere feelings that we found it impossible to restrain our tears. We consoled them somewhat by giving hopes that per-"

haps

haps we may soon return, and for the purpose of preserving their good dispositions, we said that it was not impossible but we may even take up a residence upon the Island. Yet before we left them they insisted upon manifesting their gratitude in a certificate which was signed by fifty-three persons; amongst whom were the Parish Priests and the principal inhabitants of the Island. The following is a literal translation of it from the original Greek.

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We the undersigned Primates and chiefs of the people, " present our most humble gratitude to the divine mercy, "inasmuch as it has procured us the greatest assistance in sending unto us the Rev. Fathers James Xavier Por tier and John Luchon, French Religious of the society "of Jesuits. Justice, gratitude, and truth call upon us to testify to the world, that they have in this place, and "to the great benefit of our Island, conducted themselves as worthy ministers of the Gospel. They seek nothing. but the glory of God and the salvation of Souls; their conversation is most edifying, their advice most salutary, and their doctrine perfectly orthodox; and we "have been highly edified in witnessing their disinterest"ed and indefatigable exertions, in preaching in the

churches, in the public places, and in the private houses, in "hearing confessions, and in visiting the poor and the "sick; and we are wonderfully consoled in beholding the fruits of their labours. They have not only attended to

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our spiritual wants, but even to those of the body. "Their house has been always open to all the sick to "whom they kindly give excellent medicines without desiring any recompence besides that which God has in "store for their Charity. Hence we look upon them as "the Physicians of our souls and bodies; as our fathers, "and as new apostles. The praises and the blessings which the whole Island bestows upon them, the prayers "and the tears with which we accompany them sufficiently testify the feelings which we have of their kind ser"vices. We anxiously desired they may remain amongst us, but their zeal, which embraces the world, would not, allow them to consent. Happy will that people be who "shall have blessings which we have had, of beholding "that good example and hearing the sacred discourses of

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those

"those servants of God. We acknowledge as true bre"thern in Christ Jesus all those who shall entertain them

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as they merit, in witness whereof we have given those presents signed with our hands, at Siphanto, the 17th day of September, 1700.

Here follow the signatures of fifty-three persons.

After mutual civilities we embarked and set sail for Serpho ThisIsland is about a dozen leagues in circumference; it is a broken country, mountainous and full of rocks, and in its sad and frightful appearance, presents a comp ete contrast to the mild and lovely Siphanto; you scarcely find corn or wine, and see very few trees here. There is a considerable quantity of cattle considering the barrenness of the Island; they nibble the herbage; and young shoots that spring up here and there between the rocks, yet they are not lean, and they have a very thick and fine fleece. Serpho too produces very good saffron, and at particular periods of the year, you may see a prodigious number of beautiful red partridges. This is the sort generally found in those Islands; you will hardly meet a gray one in the entire. There are some iron mines, and two very fine loadstoue mines in it.

(TO BE CONTINUED.)

CHARACTER AND ANECDOTES OF THE

CANADIAN INDIANS.

The Indians of Canada and its neighbourhood, are a people of peculiar manners: they lay it down as a prineiple that it is beneath the dignity of man, to be astonished at any thing, and hence studiously avoid any appearance of surprise, at even the most unexpected occurrences, and although quite reserved and formal before strangers, they are when unrestrained by their presence, perfectly social and good humoured, and laugh very m ch at what they consider the ridiculous customs of their European visitors. They speak very imperfectly the languages o the colonists, which they have principally learned in their intercourse with them in traffic, and from their communication with the missionaries. They are a very moral people, and have

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great