first I could hardly repress a smile, at such a medley of sounds, as I cannot possibly describe to you. If you ever heard a large number of boys huzzaing, and noticed the clashing of the shrill and the gruff* voices, you may form some small idea of our singing last Sunday. But when I looked at the dear children, and remembered that the Lord had enabled us to gather together so goodly a number of them, and that they were all with one accord engaged in making a noise about the true God and the Saviour of sinners, I was sensibly affected with gratitude to God, and assure you enjoyed a greater musical feast than I should have done in hearing a chorus of the first voices. The children have no idea of singing, and in teaching them, we were sometimes obliged to simplify the act as follows:

"Now, boys, to sing is to make a noise; you must, therefore, each endeavour to make the same kind of noise which I do: and he, whose noise most resembles mine, will be the best singer." They then set to work; and by degrees the effort assumes something like a musical sound. But now the very discord of native children attempting to sing the praises of God, is music to me.

goes

At our class meeting in the Pettah, the other evening, (which was led in Portuguese,) my soul was much revived. We have never yet, from this station, written home much about conversions; but you must not conclude, therefore, that we have none. It is true, they are not numerous, nor so much so as doubtless they would be if we were more faithful. The Lord make us more so. But still the work steadily on. At the class meeting the other evening, a poor man told us in Portuguese, "I am like the poor Prodigal in the Bible, I have left my heavenly Father, I have undone myself, but I am coming back again, and I hope my Father will yet give me to feel that I am his poor recovered child." His cries were truly affecting and encouraging. "Deos tem miserecordia par me," (God have mercy upon me,) while the tears of penitence trickled down his sable face. Three Cingalese young men, who have met in class with us in Colombo, we have appointed as schoolmasters at country stations on the circuit. They appear sincere young men, and I hope will be useful to us hereafter; one is at Colpetty, about two miles and a half off; another at Maratto, about 11 miles; and the other at Pantura, about 15 miles distant.

The last two were brought up by brother Armour; the former was a scholar under brother Clough, at Galle; his name is Cornelius; he has lately intimated to me a wish to begin to preach; I have desired him to write a sermon in Cingalese, that we may judge of his call to the work. The other Sunday I was much pleased with him: going to preach at his school, a book of Cingalese prayers was mentioned; I expressed my fears that it was rather in too high a style for the common people to understand; to which he replied," then, Sir, I can make a prayer out of my heart!" I said, "Well, Cornelius, we will Just then a sensible country born young man came up to me and said, with how much pleasure he had heard the master pray extempore in his own language; on which I was resolved to give him

see."

a trial; and he prayed with so much readiness, humility, and fervour for about ten minutes, that I could not conceal my emotions. The Lord be praised! The work is gradual, but it is effectual; and, by the blessing of the Lord of the harvest, it must go on. We must, however, have more brethren sent out to us, because our way is opening on every hand.

FROM THE PANOPLIST.

Extract of a Letter from Rev. GORDON HALL, to the Treasurer. Bombay Dec. 15, 1817. DEAR SIR, Our hope and support is, that the seed sown by our labours may yet spring up. God grant it may be so. For a week past I have been delighted with the applications for the Gospel of Matthew, and the Tracts that we have printed. Within a few months. past, I think I have distributed nearly one thousand of the Guzerattee Tract, and about one half that number of the Scripture Tract in Mahratta; a hundred of the Tract we have just printed, and about the same number of copies of the Gospel of Matthew.

These I have distributed with my own hand, not knowing how many my brethren have disposed of. Within a week past, a considerable number of young Jews have come to the house, and solicited copies of Matthew; four calling one day, and three another. Just before I took my pen to write this letter, three boys came to beg Tracts. I gave to each of them; and since I began to write, one of these, after having gone away, returned with another lad who desired a Tract. It is but a short time since they began to come to our house to request these things.

We see nothing to prevent our carrying our plan of schooling to a great extent. We hope to do it, and have it in contemplation soon to print a catechism and other school books. This method of instruction is exceedingly popular in Bengal, and has obtained the patronage of government.-In short, all sorts of persons, religious and irreligious, seem to applaud it, and think it a sure, though a gradual method for the conversion of the heathen. It certainly must produce great effects in due time. I remain, &c. G. HALL.

Extract of a Letter from Rev. CYRUS KINGSBURY, to the Treasurer. Chickamaugah, March 20, 1818.

"The Lord continues to deal graciously with us at Chickamaugah. We expect three more, two of them natives, will be added to our little church at our next communion, which will be on the Sabbath after next. Several others are under serious impressions. This is truly the work of the Lord and not ours, and it is marvellous in our eyes.

Extract of a letter from Rev. M. E. WILSON, a missionary in Franklin county, Ohio, to his friend in Andover, dated March 2d, 1818. Good people exert themselves very much here to support the gospel. Many of them pay a tax for the gospel, which would be thought intolerable in New-England. There is generally a great readiness

to hear the preached word, often a real eagerness and hungering after it, and sometimes a profound attention. Some appear to be under deep conviction of sin, some rejoicing in a very happy and satisfactory hope. I ride from one settlement to another, preach almost daily, and usually three times on the Sabbath to small assemblies generally collected in one room, meeting almost every where I go, with scattered instances of serious impressions, of hopeful conversions, and of the roused attention of professors. I find the greatest want of religious tracts in this country. The few which I brought with me are received and read with the greatest eagerness. Most of the people have never heard of a tract. Some few have been brought in by New-England people, a few small societies have been formed, and there is a nominal deposit of tracts at Marietta, but the deposit has for a long time been empty, and none can be obtained. I wish there could be a deposit at Columbus, and a supply sent on. I find people almost every where ready to establish tract societies; and from Columbus tracts could be obtained with ease. Most of the new settlers in this country are extremely poor; money is scarce, and they feel utterly unable to buy. Here is a field in which our New-England brethren may exercise their charity with happy effect, in the distribution of tracts and Bibles. I have found many families destitute of the Bible. In visiting a man, (he is since dead,) who had been wilfully wounded with a rifle ball by one of his neighbours, I found that he had no Bible in his house, nor could he or his wife read. He appeared almost wholly insensible respecting a future state and still more so respecting the leading truths of the Christian religion. This is not a solitary instance. Whole neighbourhoods of such people sometimes get together. Can any thing be done for them? They must not be neglected. They must be sought out, and taught to read, and instructed in the truths of religion. Boston Rec.

AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY.

Letters have been received from Messrs. Mills and Burgess, the agents of the American Colonization Society. They arrived in London in December, after a very boisterous passage, in which they narrowly escaped shipwreck on the coast of France. They were received in England with the greatest kindness and attention, and every facility given them for prosecuting their researches in Africa, by some of the most distinguished characters in that country. After procuring much valuable information in England, and obtaining letters to the governor of Sierra Leone, and other establishments in Africa, they sailed for that country early in February. The following are extracts from their letters:

Extract of a letter dated London, Dec. 30.

"Of the fifty-five days which have elapsed since our appointment as your agents, ten were spent in the United States; thirty on the Atlantic; ten in France; and five have passed since our arrival in England. You will see that we are just entering on the active du

ties of our agency. Though some delays have been inevitable, we have not loitered. Our passage across the Atlantic was very short. The nineteenth evening after we left the capes of the Delaware, soundings were obtained at the entrance of the British Channel. Our end seemed to be within reach; but a terrific gale, which began on the evening of the 7th December, taught us the fallacy of our hopes. Land had not become visible, and the thick clouds had prevented any accurate observation for some days. Both our latitude and longitude were doubtful. When the gale began the captain judged it prudent to put back to sea a few hours. Eighteen hours after, when the violence of the gale had not abated; when the sea raged, and the soundings continually diminished; when it seemed impossible to retrace our path, with a hope to ride out the tempest, the masts were ordered to be cut away, and the anchors to be cast.

In a short time our large new cables were dissevered by the rocks, and the ship was at the mercy of the winds, without masts, sails, or anchors. Our worthy captain said that he had done all in his

power for our safety, but that we were lost; the ship could not survive the tempest. A long reef of rocks soon appeared before us, frightfully dashing the waves into the air. At this spectacle our captain said, we have but a few minutes more in this world: then hastily stepping into the boat astern, attended by his little sons, and a skilful sailor, he, with a hatchet, cut the cordage of the boat, and she was driven away. We saw them a moment-and saw them no more. Through the mercy of God, without human foresight, and to our utter astopishment, a current in the sea carried the ship around the point of the rocks. They were supposed to be at the western extreme of the island of Guernsey-Confiding in that power which gave us this signal deliverance, we succeeded the third day after in entering the harbour of St. Maloes in France. After a detention of four days in quarantine, we arrived in London, by the way of Havre and Southampton, in twelve days. Both in France and in England we have been uniformly treated with civility and kindness. We have already had interviews with several of the principal gentlemen to whom our letters were addressed. They have received us with much cordiality, and view the objects of the American Society with sentiments of enlarged benevolence."

Extract of a letter, dated London, Jan. 17.

"His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester, Patron of the African Institution, to whom an official letter was addressed by the American Society for colonizing the free people of colour of the U. States, has been in the country for several weeks past. Mr. Wilberforce made a communication to his Royal Highness on our behalf, to inquire whether he would prefer having the letter transmitted to him in the country, or wait for a personal interview in town. He appointed an hour this day, when he would be in town, and would see us in person. Mr. Wilberforce attended us to Gloucester House. His Royal Highness entered into a free conversation on the circum

stances of our voyage, the population of the U. States, the number and situation of the people of colour, our courts of judicature, and several other topics. After reading the letter from the President of the society, we put into his hands a printed copy of its constitution, together with a manuscript copy of our commission, with the language, spirit, and sentiments of which, he showed himself, by his words and countenance, to be much gratified. He intimated his disposition to give in answer a letter to the President of the American Society, and Mr. Wilberforce engaged to be a medium of its safe transmission. He added, that it would give him pleasure to see us on our return from Africa, if we should take England in our route, and that the African Institution would then know better in what manner they could aid the American Society. In the mean time he requested that in our communication to the American Society we would take notice of his having received the letter of the American President, and to make assurances of the readiness and cordiality with which he should co-operate with the American Society in the prosecution of their designs, which must contribute to the same results with the efforts of the African Institution. Mr. Wilberforce has fur-. ther increased our obligations to him this day, by introducing us to the Secretary. His lordship appeared to have a perfect knowledge of the constitution and designs of the American Society. He cast his eyes at our commission, and answered with promptitude, that he should give us letters of introduction and recommendation to the governor of Sierra Leone and other officers, who might be able to afford us patronage and assistance while prosecuting our inquiries on the coast.

Mr. Wilberforce has exemplified the prudence of a counsellor, the tenderness of a father, and the benevolence of a christian, in his communications to us, and in the arrangements which he has made on our behalf. We cannot express in too strong language our admiration of his excellent character, our gratitude for his kindness, and our sincere prayer to the Preserver of Men, that he would spare his valuable life many years, and succeed his continual exertions to diminish human misery, and diffuse abroad divine knowledge. In some future letters, we shall improve an opportunity to acknowledge the favours which we have received from other gentlemen, who have shown themselves "ready to every good work," disregarding distinctions of nation, land or colour.

Extract.-London, January 28.

"In opposition to opinions now circulated in the U. States, the colony at Sierra Leone was never more flourishing. Its internal government is regularly administered: its power fears no assault from the native tribes, and its influence contributes much to the civilization of the adjacent country. Measures are adopted for the education, christian instruction, and internal improvements of the colony, which must be attended with the happiest results. Its population exceeds ten thousand."