Oak Street UNCLASSIFIED Unfv.cf r/T. 52 /5-5-f ary THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY From the collection of Julius Doerner, Chicago Purchased, 1918. It SERMONS ON THE OCCASION OF THE DEATH OF NORMAN MACLEOD, D.D., MINISTER OF THE BARONY PARISH, GLASGOW ; DEAN OF THE ORDER OF THE THISTLE ; AND ONE OF HER MAJESTY’S CHAPLAINS FOR SCOTLAND, PREACHED ON THE 23rd JUNE, 1872, IN THE BARONY PARISH CHURCH , AND IN BARONY CHAPEL , PARLIAMENTARY ROAD. GLASGOW : JAMES MACLEHOSE, PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY. EDINBURGH: EDMONSTON AND DOUGLAS. LONDON: HAMILTON ADAMS AND CO. 1 8 7 2 . Printeb at the Stnibevsitg Press BY ROBERT MACLEHOSE, 55 GLASSFORD STREET, GLASGOW. 3Ert Jttemcrrg x>f NORMAN MACLEOD, D.D. WORDS SPOKEN TO THE CONGREGATIONS OF BARONY PARISH CHURCH AND BARONY CHAPEL, ON THE SUNDAY AFTER HIS FUNERAL . 703918 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Alternates https://archive.org/details/sermonsonoccasioOOunse In the ^Barnnj) parish Church. PAGE. BY REV. ARCHD. WATSON, D. D. , DUNDEE, .... 7 BY REV. MALCOLM C. TAYLOR, D.D., CRAT1IIE, ... 21 In the ^hirxmj) Chapel. BY REV. CHAS. M. GRANT, B.D., ST. MARY’S, PARTIC'K, . . 36 BY REV. DAVID MORRISON, DUNBLANE, 47 REMEMBER THEM WHO HAVE THE RULE OVER YOU, WHO HAVE SPOKEN UNTO YOU THE WORD OF GOD, WHOSE FAITH FOLLOW.” REMEMBRANCES OF OUR PASTOR AND FRIEND. Forenoon Service , Barony Parish Church . — Rev. Dr. Watson. I HAVE never had so sad a task to perform as that which is set before me this day. It is a day of sorrow. It is a day on which we are allowed to indulge our sorrow. When you assembled here last Sunday morning you thought of your minister, and you prayed for him, and trusted that you would soon hear his voice again; and to-day you mourn over his loss, and your mourning is not less hut greater when you remember that this loss of yours has stirred the hearts of tens of thousands in this country, in India, in America, and over the world. His ministry was for you, hut you did not grudge to share this privilege with others, and all who ever heard his voice or sought instruction or pleasure in his writings, now share with you in the sacred privilege of grief ; and the universal expression of regret which has been drawn forth within these few days, serves hut to confirm you in the consciousness that your sorrow is neither slight nor to he soon healed. On this the first service which is held here after the death of my dear friend, your minister, I do not even make a pretence to preach a sermon to you. I have come rather to give utterance to our common affliction, and to speak to you 8 REMEMBRANCES OF as his friend, who knew much that was in his heart, and who will be received this day by you as one who can talk about him in a spirit of kindred sympathy, who needs consolation as much, perhaps, as you, and who can only find that consolation in reflecting on his great and good and loving spirit. I am to- day thinking your thoughts, sorrowing with your sorrow, uttering your bitter regrets that I have profited so little by his teaching and his life ; and to-day I am also the spokesman of your unfeigned attachment to his memory, of your reverence for his noble and high character, and of your love for his person — a love which is deep and unchanging, and which makes us better men the deeper and stronger it is. There is but one feeling amongst us this day, one common subject for our meditations. I ask no other, and knowing well how he himself set aside all conventionalisms when some great duty lay before him, so I, in that spirit, seek to dwell with you for a little on his character and life. Let the man himself be to us for a time our living epistle, that we may read in him what he has taught us by his example and his words. No one could know Dr. Macleod for even a short time without discovering his large-heartedness and intense power of sympathy. His capacity of entering into every form and shade of human life and feeling was boundless. It was this large-heartedness which struck you when you first came to know him, and the longer you knew him the more were you struck with it; it seemed to grow upon you. You could not hear him speak for many minutes without discovering it, and as year by year you listened to him and lived with him, you came to think that you had never rightly appreciated it. It was the first and last thing in his character which impressed you — indeed, there were people who, though they could not resist the force of this intense sympathy, yet could hardly believe what they saw and felt, and they sought the solution of their doubts in trying to account for this manifold power by supposing that it could not be all real. It is impossible, they thought, that any one man can enter into so many phases of OUR PASTOR AND FRIEND. 9 human life with a fellow-feeling at once so comprehensive and true. This sympathy was seen in every aspect of his character : in social life, in his friendship, in his reading, in his appreciation of men who differed widely in politics, in theology, in temperament, and in habit. Everywhere he was nt home. With the young, with the poor, with the simple, with the weak, he was as one who understood them and who liked them ; and in all ranks and classes throughout the kingdom, and in other countries, there are hundreds who can recall his presence and remember how he mingled in their society, and, was never reckoned an alien to their tastes or a stranger to their ways of thinking. In sorrow and joy — in your homes, when the dark cloud of adversity or bereavement broke over you — at your wedding feasts, when your hearts were glad — be your circumstances what they might, you found him united with you and with your interests, ready to counsel, comfort, rejoice, and aid you as if, for the time, that were the only centre of his life, and the only way in which it was worth spending his time. I never knew a man bound to humanity at so many points ; I never knew a man who found in humanity so much to interest him. To him the most common-place man or woman yielded up some contribution of individuality ; everywhere he saw something worth looking at and studying, and you were tempted to wonder which of all the various moods through which he passed was the one most congenial to him, and some might be tempted to doubt whether it was possible to be really genuine and true in any of them at all. How is it possible to disabuse their minds of such doubts and suspicions ? It is not in human nature, in even its noblest forms, to preserve every impression in its original force for ever. A nature like his — open on all sides, and keenly susceptible of impressions, must seem to others less deep — nay, it must at times be kiss retentive, and there will be an appearance of transitoriness about the emotions which are stirred up. But you never cherished a thought of his want of sympathy with you; you could not. 10 REMEMBRANCES OF It was given to him — not indeed to him alone, hut to him pre-eminently, and as a type of many others — to commend the Gospel to the hearts of men by bringing truths into prominence which had been kept in the background. No one whose memory can range over thirty years can overlook the fact, that during that time a great change has passed over the general tone and style of preaching in Scotland. This change has not arisen from the discovery of any new truth in theology or in the human heart. We have the same Scriptures, with the same divine truths embedded in their pages ; we have the same human nature, with its deep cravings and necessities ; and hardly one of the facts of religion or of human life which at the present day form the main subjects of pulpit teaching was doubted or suppressed in the previous generation ; but there can be no question that the modes of thought, and the proportion which religious truths bear to one another, have undergone an alteration in religious discourses during the lives of. many of us ; and the change has been in many cases so marked that a cry has arisen that a new Gospel is preached, and a new theology has superseded the old. In pne sense this is true. You hear much more now than in other days that religion is a life ; that salvation means the state of the heart towards God and towards His will ; that to be like Christ is heaven, and to be turned away from His Spirit is death ; much more now than in other times is the great truth pressed on your attention that the only way in which divine truth can benefit men is when it is admitted into the soul, a 8 tive to the question of raising Native Ministers ; — in fact, that they could hardly fail to know nearly as much about this question as do the supporters of the Mission in this country. But this minute completely undeceived us as to that point ; and (I may add) as to several other points also. The Board very naturally requested me to reply to that portion of the minute that relates to the training of Native Ministers; the more especially, as I myself had expressed an intention of furnishing some details on this subject. This proposal of mine is noticed also by the Acting Committee. It is proper, however, to state here that I after- wards regretted my having made any such proposal. My reason was, the way in which the statement on Affiliation was received by some of the supporters of the Mission in Scotland — -so very different from the way in which it was received by all of them in this country. Such a statement had been repeatedly called for by the Board. They were of opinion, that the time had now come when the supporters of the Mission must determine whether the measures that had been adopted were to be allowed to be continued, or not. But the questions involved in these measures were so numerous, that several of the members had great difficulty in making up their own minds, so as to be able to express a decided opinion on the subject. The explanations given in the statement, however, served to remove those doubts and scruples they had formerly entertained. Having carefully considered these explanations, they expressed their entire ap- ( 4 ) proval of the steps that had been taken, as well as of the manner in which our operations had all along been conducted. The statement was also read with interest by a good many persons not members of our Church ; and there is reason to believe that it was of service in various ways. The Board expected that the statement would be as acceptable in Scotland as it had been here. But such was not the fact. The explanations called for render- ed it imperative on us to mention several very import- ant matters, — well-known indeed to every one here that has given much attention to the subject of Mis- sions, but seldom or never adverted to in such ac- counts as are published for the information of the supporters of Missions at home. For this, and perhaps some other reasons, these explanations seemed to disturb people’s equanimity, and, somehow or other, to put them a good deal about. All this I regretted much to perceive. The manner, then, in which this statement was received, determined me to lay aside all thoughts of furnishing details on the subject of Native Minis- ters ; — at all events, in the way I originally intended. The only object 1 had in view, when I expressed this intention, was simply to convey to others some inform- ation that I thought very much wanted. Certain remarks that I had, from time to time, observed in the Missionary Record of the Church of Scotland , led me to think that the subject of raising up Native Minis- ters was one that was far from being clearly under- stood ; or rather, that it was one that seemed to be a good deal mis-understood. In particular, in the Record for July, 1865 (page 82 ), there appeared from the pen of “ an Elder,” an article on the general sub- ject of the India Mission. The “ Elder” strongly advocates the propriety of changing the administra- tion of the Mission. He remarks that “ he sees no occasion for our Church wasting its limited means on elementary education.” His proposal is “ to con- vert our three Colleges into seminaries for the training of educated native Christian youths for the ministry.” My attention was particularly called to this pro- posal ; and I was asked to state what I thought of it. All that I thought of it was simply, that the writer of the proposal really seemed to be in great want of having some accurate information as to facts. But, so far as the wants of the Calcutta Mission were concerned, there was no need for our entering on the question. We had no need whatever for any thing in the shape of Bursaries. It was long since our work of training converts for the ministry had been accom- plished ; — long since our Divinity-Students had com. pleted their Literary and Theological courses ; — long since they had presented themselves before the Presby- tery of Calcutta. It is plain, then, that the Mission here had nothing to gain by our writing statements about Native Ministers. And for the reason I have just mentioned, I considered, that I was quite free from any sort of obligation I might have thought myself under to carry out the proposal I had made. But certain events have lately occurred in con- nexion with this Mission that have compelled us to re-consider our determination. ( G ) Three Native gentlemen, who have long heen con- nected with our Church and with our Mission, have forwarded to the Calcutta Presbytery applications to betaken on trials, with a view to their being ordained as Ministers of the Church of Scotland. — Two of them have long been desirous of being set apart to the work of the ministry ; and it may be proper to state here that what induced them to forward their applications to the Presbytery on the 'present occasion, was a con- viction they had been led to form, that there existed on the part of a large number of the supporters of the Mission in Scotland, a very earnest desire to have a Body of Native Ministers. The Presbytery have long and intimately known these gentlemen ; and as they feel assured that many years may yet elapse before more suitable persons will be found, they have consented to receive their applications. But, before taking a single step towards their Ordin- ation, the Presbyteiy will require an assurance that their salaries shall be paid by the supporters of the Mission in Scotland. The supporters of the Mission in this country do indeed contribute with great liberality ; but there is one thing that the Presbytery do not feel themselves justified in calling on the people of this country to do ; and that is, to become in any way responsible for the payment of the salaries of ordained Native Ministers. The funds, therefore, that may be requisite for that purpose, must, for the present at least, be all raised in Scotland. The Presbytery, however, do not wish to call on the Church to undertake the payment of the Salaries of ( 7 ) GO these men without having, in the first instance, care- fully considered the whole matter. The Church is entitled to receive full information on the whole sub- ject ; so that no hasty measures may be formed, no pecuniary burden undertaken that might hereafter prove the occasion either of disappointment or regret. But, apart altogether from these and such like con- siderations, both the Corresponding Board and the Calcutta Presbytery feel very strongly, that the time has now come, when a sense of what they owe to themselves renders it incumbent on them to lay before the people of Scotland, some account of the nature of those efforts that have been put forth both by this Mission and by this Presbytery, with the view of raising up native ministers. These reasons, then, have induced me to comply with the request that has been made to me, namely, to draw up a truthful narrative of facts, -^-in short to present a faithful account of the various efforts that have been put forth here, in the hope of raising up a native ministry. All Christians will at once acknowledge (unhap- pily, however, the thought is one that is neither so earnestly nor so habitually dwelt upon, as it unques- tionably ought to be) that the .Religion we are striv- ing to propagate among these people is distinguished from the various other religious systems around us — ■ as in many other particulars, so especially in this, that it emphatically claims to be a True Religion. Truth — That is its essential, its distinguishing characteristic. — It plainly follows from this, that any communication professing to give to Christians at a ( 8 ) distance, a faithful account of the progress of their Re- ligion among a heathen people — any account, in short, that is at all worth the name of an instructive account must have this quality, also, as its distinguishing cha- racteristic. If tliere be any circumstance that is of importance in enabling people to form a correct judgment on any question that may be submitted to them, that circum- stance ought not to be withheld merely on the ground that it may not be considered encouraging. Were my object, on the present occasion, merely to endeavour to induce people to undertake the payment of the salaries of these three Candidates, perhaps I might hope to succeed best in that, by dwelling at large on the great importance of raising up native mi- nisters, the happy results that might reasonably be anticipated from the labours of these men, and such like topics. In other words, I should endeavour to give great prominence to one class of facts, and as carefully endeavour to withdraw attention from ano- ther class of facts. By adopting such a course I might perhaps produce an effective statement. But then, my statement would, in no sense of the word, be an instructive one. It would be the very opposite of that. It could only tend to distort peoples views, and to lead them to draw erroneous inferences. What 1 said might indeed be all true ; still I should be telling merely a portion, in fact, a small portion, of the whole truth. In all departments of Missionary labour here, the discouragements far outnumber the encouragements. An account, therefore, of Missionary effort that should dwell merely on “ encouraging circumstances,” might 61 ( 9 ) indeed be most eloquently set forth, and so succeed for a time in arousing people’s emotions ; but it could contain no instruction ; — it could never tend to make men any wiser on the subject of Missions ; and could hardly fail, in the long run, to prove injurious to that very cause it professed to advocate. There is a well-known proverb that half the truth may virtually amount to a falsehood. To raise up a Body of well-educated Native Minis- ters — this was what, at one time, we considered as constituting the 'primary and leading object of our Mission. But now, instead of viewing that as our primary object, we regard it as no object at all. For the raising up of a Native Ministry forms no part of the work in which we are now engaged. This, for the present at least, has been entirely abandoned. And how has such a change of purpose been pro- duced ? Why is it, in a word, that this object has, for the present at least, been entirely abandoned ? This is the very point I am now so desirous to ex- plain. But the task is not an easy one. I cannot effectually set forth the reason of all our proceedings without touching on a good many details. For the subject before me is one that extends over a consider- able period of time ; it is one also that embraces a variety of transactions. I trust, however, that all candid and intelligent supporters of the Mission will be quite satisfied, if I can succeed in furnishing them with full and precise information with regard to the following questions ; — B ( 10 ) I. What success has attended the labours of the Missionaries of our Church in training Native Minis- ters ? II. What success has attended the efforts made by the Presbytery of Calcutta to ordain Native Ministers ? III. What particular class of Native converts alone ought to receive any encouragement whatever to prepare themselves for becoming candidates for the Ministry ? The answers to these questions will, I think, com- prehend every remark that needs to be offered. And, for these answers, I will rely mainly on certain facts that I shall adduce from four Reports that have, at dif- ferent times, been given in to the General Assembly. I propose then to set forth — I. The success that has attended the labours of the Missionaries of our Church in training Native Ministers. In order to do this, it is necssary (1) to call special attention to the fact that we have trained Native con- verts for the office of the Ministry ; and (2) to point out the manner in which we did train them. With the view then, of convincing you of the fact that we have trained Native converts, I have to request that you will consult the following document, namely — Report by the Committee for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, to the General Assembly oj the Church of Scotland, given in by James Macfar- lane, D. D. Convener — 22 nd May, 1856. (Reproduced in the Home and Foreign Missionary Record of the Church of Scotland , August , 1856, p. 196, et sep) ( 11 ) 02 For myself this document possesses a more than ordinary interest. By its perusal several matters have been most vividly suggested to me. In con- sidering it, therefore, I shall not confine myself entirely to the question now in hand, but shall also offer a few remarks on some of those other points that have been so forcibly brought before me. Of course, however, what I am principally con- cerned with is the establishment of the fact, that we have trained Native Converts. To that, therefore^ I shall at once proceed after having made one pre- liminary remark. From the Report, then, of the Committee for the propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, that was presented to the General Assembly of last year (1866), I learn that, of the members composing the Commit- tee by whom this Report of 1856 was drawn up, four at least were members of the “ original Committee of ten,” that is, of the very first Committee that had ever been connected with the Mission. They had been associated with the founder himself. As a matter of course, then, they must have had a personal knowledge of the more important proceedings of the Mission from its very commencement. On that very ground, therefore, any statement made, by them must be deserving of great consideration. Let me ask you now to turn to the following passage* — “ Agreeably to the remit of the Acting- Committee, of date 22nd February, 1856, the Sub- Committee had under consideration the present con- * Original Report of 1856, | page 12. Missionary Reoord, August, 1856, page. 199. ( 12 ) dition and future prospects of their Missionary opera- tions in India, and after several meetings on the subject, and the most ample deliberation, they are at one in the opinion that the time has now come when a change in the mode of conducting the Mission is not only advisable but necessary.” And what is the nature of the change that they are thus at one in so earnestly recommending ? The change is indeed a most thorough one ; amount- ing to no less than a complete abandonment of all Educational operations, the entire discontinuance of the schools in the several Presidencies within a period more or less remote, and*,'- finally, the disposing of all the buildings connected with them. Now, the question which it is of importance to con- sider with reference to the point before us is — Why is it that the Committee recommend, with such earnest- ness, so very sweeping a change as this ? Strong reasons they must have had ; for they pronounce the change to be not only advisable but even necessary. Do they, then, express any dissatisfaction with the manner in which the mission was then conducted ? Do they say (what some recent speeches and state- ments do certainly more than insinuate) that there had been a failure in carrying out any one of the schemes of the Mission after it had come into the hands of those who were then conducting its ope- rations ? That was a point on which the Committee were well competent to judge ; for, as I have remarked, they were acquainted with the proceedings of the Mission from its commencement. ( 13 ) 6 3 Do they, then, utter a single word that would lead one to infer that the Committee had any sort of notion, that the Mission was now conducted with less zeal, with less diligence, with less ability than it had former- ly been ? The precise opposite of any thing like this is the fact. I purposely forbear referring to any of the private communications that were received from this Committee, in all of which there was only an expression of appro- val in regard to the manner in which all our operations were conducted. Let me, however, call your attention to the words employed at the beginnig of this Report — u In Cal- cutta your Missionaries have been labouring with their wonted fidelity and zeal ; and, we are thankful to add, not without some measure of success. It is our pleasing duty to report that three pupils of the Institution have, during the year, been admitted by baptism into the Christian Church.” It is manifest, then, that the Committee could have had no such idea in their minds as that the Mis- sion was accomplishing less now, than it had done at some former period of its history. The reasons that operated with them are briefly set forth : and these reasons — they state — “ constrained them to consider the propriety of their adapting them- selves to the altered circumstances in which they were placed.” Now, there is One of “ these altered circumstances’ that stands forth very prominent. The Committee remark that “the raising up of Native Converts to preach the Gospel to their brethren, was one of the ( I* ) great objects of the Missionary School in its original programme.’' Let me ask you to notice what follows — - “ That object has in a great degree been attained.” What object is this ? It is no other than the great object contemplated by the founder; for (as the Re- port goes on to state) “ at Calcutta, there are not less than fifteen converts of this class — converts, namely, who after the necessary preparation might be able as well as willing to devote themselves to the service of Christ among their countrymen.” This is a remarkable declaration. What the Committee urge as one at least of the reasons for now wishing to change the mode of their Christian operations is not any thing like a failure of the Mission; on the contrary, it is its complete success. One would almost infer that the founder of the mission had never intended that educational operations should be carried on any longer than might be found necessary to impart an adequate literary and theologi- cal training to a certain number of Converts. But the training of these Converts was now completed. The special object, then, for which the educational portion of the scheme had been established, was now accomplished. In respect of its training operations, the Mission had done all that the founder ever expected of it. It had been crowned with complete success. The Institution had done its work ; and so effectually had it done that work, that there was no purpose to be served in upholding it any longer. With respect, therefore, to the first point that it seem- ed necessary to set forth, there is no need that I should 6 4 ( 15 ) add another word. For, that we have trained Native Converts for the office of the ministry — this is what no one now can for a moment doubt. [Before proceeding to consider the next point, I wish to offer a few remarks regarding those “ altered circumstances” to which the Committee refer. Some account of these will serve to explain various matters that seem to have exercised considerable influence over the working of the Mission. The circumstances in question are enumerated in the sketch the Committee give of the history of the Mission — a sketch re- markable, at once, for its conciseness and for its simplicity. The Mission — they inform us — had been established about twenty-five years before. At that time the means of education from other sources, for the Native youth, were of the most meagre description. Ac- cordingly, the erection of Missionary Schools in the several Presidencies recommended itself, as one of the most likely methods, under the blessing of God, of obtaining access unto, and of extensively leavening, the heathen mind with the knowledge of the truth, as it is in Jesus. And the Committee do not forget the large measure of good which had thus been accomplished, not only in the conversion of many to the faith and obedience of the Gospel, but in the extensive diffu- sion of Christian truth among men of every caste — • among Hindoos and Mahomedans alike, with many of whom it might yet come to an abundant har- vest. ( 16 ) But, as the Committee observe, matters then were very different from what they had been twenty- five years before ; a great change had passed over the face of society in India. The means of education among all classes of the community had been greatly increased * and, above all, there was the recent in- troduction of a national system much more palatable to the heathen than any school system where re- ligion is taught. CD O These, then, were the changes, in consequence of which the Committee felt themselves constrained so earnestly to recommend the discontinuance of all educational operations in connexion with their Mis- sions. In this recommendation, many of the suppor- ters of the Mission here entirely concurred ; and there was a very general impression among us, that the wishes of the Committee would have been carried into effect. With respect to our own views in this matter, I may observe, that a consideration of those circum stances which are here stated by the Committee, forced us to come to a conclusion precisely the opposite of theirs. It was by means of education that all the changes mentioned by them, had been mainly produced. All the other means hitherto adopted, had been found to be of small or no avail. But a change had now passed over the face of society in India, greater per- haps than any change that had been effected in the course of many previous centuries. It appeared to us, then, that this was about one of the very clearest indications that could well have been given, that it 6*5 ( 17 ) was the will of the Almighty that the commencement of the renovation of these people — which we knew must be a very slow and a very gradual process — should mainly be brought about by means of the education of the young. Accordingly, when it was decided that the Insti- tution was to be continued, we did not consider it to be our duty to follow the advice of some friends who earnestly recommended us to abandon it ; we thought it right to abide by it, at any rate for some time long- er ; we resolved to do what we could to increase its efficiency ; and we hoped that we might be able, by pro- ceeding cautiously and gradually, to carry it on at a much less cost to its supporters than it had hither- to been found possible to do. All this, I may men- tion by the way, has been most effectually and most thoroughly accomplished now. But there was * one altered circumstance that we did not seem to have at all reflected upon. Had we done so, our resolution to carry on the Institution would, no doubt, have been different from what it was. For the consequence of this altered circumstance was that, in the course of three or four years after this Report had been given in, we ourselves were brought to precisely the same conclusion as that of the Com- mittee, although for a very different reason. Indeed, the harassing questions and endless distractions that now arose, were such, that we rejoiced to think that the time could not be far distant, when we might say, with a good conscience, that the Institution ought to be discontinued ; that this was a measure that was now not only “ desirable, but even necessary. c ( 18 ) The circumstance 1 am now referring to, is the very great change of sentiment that seemed to have taken place in the minds of not a few of the supporters with respect to the value, in a Missionary point of view, of all the operations conducted by the Mission. — The natural consequence of this was that they completely failed to appreciate the nature of those difficult ques- tions which now began to arise. They did not con- tribute so liberally as before ; in short, they seemed to manifest but little sympathy with the efforts we were endeavouring to put forth. And how are we to account for such a complete change of feeling as seems to be implied in all this ? The explanation is quite easy. The Mission had now been established upwards of twenty -five years. The truth is, then, that it had by this time lost all the attractions of novelty. When Missions to the heathen were first established, every thing relating to them was new, and wonderful, and strange, and mysterious. To the labours of some of the first Missionaries an extraordinary measure of success would appear (at all events was believed) to have been granted ; the accounts of that success seem to have been set forth in a very striking man- ner. The consequence was that people's feelings were greatly excited, and the most powerful emotions were produced. Men of fervid imaginations were, thereby, led to form vast anticipations (having, of course, not* the slightest foundation in the Word of God) of the wmnderful changes that might be expected to be produced, in an incredibly short space of time, over the whole heathen world, by the diffusion among the people of the knowledge of Christian- ity. To give you some idea of the nature of those anti- cipations as well as of the language in which they were set forth, I will quote a passage from a well- known popular work. - * After giving an account of the success of modern Missionary enterprise among the Chinese and among some of the races of Africa, the writer sums up his argument with these words : — “May it be permitted to say that a voice from heaven, full of meaning, is heard in the particular character of the successes — how limited soever they may be — which have crowned the incipient attempts to convert the heathen ? The veriest reprobates of civilization and social order have been the first to be brought in to grace the triumphs of the Gospel in its recent attempts at foreign conquest ; as if at once to solve all doubts, and to refute all cavils relating to the practicability and promise of the enterprise. If it had been thought or affirmed that the stupefaction and induration of heart produced upon a race by ages of uncorrected ferocity and sensuality must repel for ever the attempts of Christian zeal, it is shown, in the instance of the extremest specimens that could have been selected, that a few years only of bene- ficent skill and patience are enough to transform the fierce and voluptuous savage into a being of pure, and gentle, and noble sentiments ; — that within a few years all the domestic virtues, and even the public virtues — graced with the decencies of rising * Natural History of Enthusiasm — p. 294 , Third Edition , London : 1830 , ( 20 ) industry, may occupy the very spots that were reek- ing with human blood, and the filthiness of every abomination which the sun blushes to behold.” This is indeed to invest the subject of heathenism with ‘ a grandeur and a glory’ quite dazzling, and, by consequence, quite misleading. It is very plain, that it must have been from these and such like stirring representations that men were led, at the outset, to form all their ideas about Mis- sions, and to build up all their sanguine anticipa- tions as to what might confidently be expected as the result of earnest and devoted Missionary effort. Most deeply is it to be regretted that such should have been the case ; — most deeply to be regretted that they should have overlooked the very different lessons on the subject of heathenism that they might so easily have learnt from the writings of the Apos- tle Paul. For, although this may have given a great impetus to Missionary enterprise at the beginning ; yet it has only led to the greater disappointment and dissatisfaction when the real facts became known at a later period. But as yet there was no real, that is, no experimental, knowledge of the nature of the heathen mind. Not- withstanding this, men laid down systems and formed anticipations, and proceeded to act on these with the utmost confidence : just as if the heathen could not fail to adapt themselves to their systems, or as if the mental constitution of the heathen had been in all respects similar to their own. Respecting several of the notions that appear to have been formed not long after the commencement ( 21 ) 66 * of Missions, and to which men seem to have adhered ever since, I shall have occasion to say a few words. What I wish to notice at present is the particular kind of Missionary communications that appears to have been alone considered as worth any attention. They were such only as gave accounts, if not of some special success, at all events of something that was thought to be striking. And when Missions were new, it was of course possible for men to say many things, in a very attractive and a very striking way ; and also to hold out great anticipations as to the results that might be expected from the carrying on of certain systems, which, however, had yet to be worked out. But we found ourselves in quite “ altered circum- stances.” The heathen mind was now known — experi- mentally known. The people we had to deal with were not “ fierce and voluptuous savages,” ready to make a profession of Christianity, or anything else, according to the whim of the moment, or as it might happen to suit their worldly interests. It was with a very different class of heathen we had to deal — a class respecting whom we soon learnt that the process of real transformation, must be a very slow and a very gradual one — so slow and so i gradual as to be nearly imperceptible. With them, therefore, we had no hope of ever succeeding, except by patient and assiduous labour, endeavouring according to our ability to impart “line upon line, and precept upon precept ; here a little and there a little.” As for exciting subjects, they had been well-nigh exhausted. With our utmost efforts, we could find but very few ; and these few were soon told. ( 22 ) It is curious to observe that, even by the time that this Report was given in, the lack of something interesting to write about, seems to have been severely felt. If you look at page 5 of the Report, you will find that, after giving a brief account of the operations of the year, 1 used these words — “ I wish it were in my power — more especially at the close of one Session, or at the commencement of another— to communicate to you some accounts which might be regarded as somewhat more interesting and encouraging than the often-repeated statements as to the number of pupils, proficiency in knowledge, and other details of that description.” Details of that description were not striking, not encouraging. On that ground they were considered dry and uninteresting; people seem to have got quite wearied of them, and probably at last ceased to pay any attention to them. Rut details of that description, that is to say, details setting forth some of the difficulties we have in deal- ing with the heathen; details in which attempts are made to explain the real nature of heathenism, its frightfully darkening and degrading effects on the soul, — effects which leave a permanent impression long after it has been professedly renounced; details giving an account of the gradual spread of knowledge among these people, the moral and intellectual improve- ment, that is taking place among them ; — these are the very details that impart knowledge, communicate in- struction, and suggest subjects for profitable reflection. As for stirring accounts about encouraging cir- cumstances, fervid appeals and the like — these may 6 7 ( 23 ) indeed excite, in some minds, a transient feeling of interest; but their effects must be very temporary. To us here who are engaged in the work, statements of the kind now mentioned are en couraging beyond all others. Indeed, were it not that we are perfectly aware of their precise value, they would lead us into utter despondency. It has frequently been remarked that when people are induced to engage in any system of well-doing, not so much from a strong sense of duty as from the novelty of the thing, or from having their emotions aroused by powerful appeals to their feelings, — the result will, in all probability, be that when the novelty is over, or when discouragements arise, all their ardour will grad- ually cool down, their first emotions will insensibly subside, and that subsidence will be followed by a powerful reaction, terminating at last in something like complete indifference. Of the truth of this remark, a very apt illustration may be found in certain facts connected with this Calcutta Mission. At one period of its history, the Mission was certainly a celebrated one — a very cele- brated one ; and called forth a most powerful interest. But like everything else, it ceased at last to be new. Not long after this Report, of 1856, was given in, a good many of its former supporters must have with- drawn their attention from it altogether, and ceased to take any interest in it. How little is known of its later proceedings was clearly brought out at the last General Assembly. One of the members of that Assembly who at one time appeared to have taken some interest in the ( 24 ) Mission, rose to express his entire disapproval of the steps that had lately been taken. This of course he was perfectly entitled to do. He then took up the subject of training Native Ministers (of all things) ; he did not know anything of the facts of the case, but he spoke with as much confidence as if he had been perfectly familiar with all of them ; he charged us with having abandoned Dr. Inglis’s great scheme, and spoke of us in such a manner, that, had it not been for the generous remarks of the corresponding member for Calcutta, he might have succeeded in making such an impression on the Venerable House as “to secure a verdict against us for having abandoned the object they had in view when they entered upon this scheme.” Very painful and very mortifying no doubt it is to be made so fully aware of all this want of interest in our work ; on the other hand, however, it is consoling to reflect that the estimation in which the Mission is held by many others who really know about it, is quite different from all this. Above all, it is consoling to think that, whatever failure there may have latterly been in exciting people’s interest, there may have been no failure at all with regard to what surely ought to be considered as the true, object of any Mission ; but that, during all these years, this Mission may have been continuing to accomplish quite as good a work as ever it had done ; that it may have been privileged to sow in the hearts of many, the incorruptible seed ; — to cast that bread upon the waters which may yet be found, even though it should be after many days. But I must now dismiss this Deport of 1856*, so interesting to myself. The remarks now offered have ( 25 ) 6 8 of course no particular reference to the subject now before us, namely, the training of Native Ministers. But they have an important bearing on certain of the proceedings of the Mission. They cannot, therefore, be considered as out of place.] To proceed now with the question more immediately before us : — I remarked that, under the head of success , there were two points to be noticed. It is not enough merely to call attention to the fact (1) that we have trained our converts for the office of the ministry. It is much more important (2) to give a description of the manner in which we did so train them. I have to request, then, that you will now turn to another document, namely — Report by the Committee for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts , to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland , given in by James Craik, D. D. Convener. 1857. The portion of this Report, having a special reference to our subject, is contained in the form of an appendix entitled — Statement relative to the General Assembly s Mission , drawn up at the request of the Corresponding Board. (Reproduced in the Home and Foreign Mis- sionary Record, January 1858, p. 8, et seq.) It may be proper to state here the circumstances that gave rise to this document. From what has been now mentioned, it will be easily seen what a diversity of opinion there now existed respecting the mode in which Missionary operations ought to be conducted. The Foreign Mission Committee had given it as their deliberate judgment, that the Institution must be dis- D ( 26 ) continued. This proposal, however, was not acquiesced m by the Church ; a majority being of opinion, that the Institution ought to be maintained. The Foreign Mis- sion Committee at once resigned; and a new Committee was appointed. But many of the former supporters of the Institution both here and in Scotland, were now bitterly opposed to it. And it was thought by some that the difficulties of conducting it would, year by year, increase. In these circumstances, no one here considered it as at all probable, hardly even possible, that it could be carried on very much longer — not beyond three or four years at farthest. The new Foreign Mission Committee were placed in circumstances of peculiar difficulty. They called on the Calcutta Board to express their sentiments on the whole subject -of the Mission. The Committee were desirous of having full information to guide them in their future proceedings. Accordingly, the Board met very often to deliberate on all matters relating to the Mission. But these matters were, many of them, of a very perplexing nature. Before venturing, therefore, to express their final decision, the Board requested to be furnished with a statement which should enter, with great minuteness, into all particulars connected with the working of the Mission for the previous ten years. It was in compliance with this request, then, that this document was drawn up. On all points that the Board considered to be of importance, the object was to convey very accurate and very precise information. Now, one point that the Board considered as of the very highest importance, was this very question relative to the training of native Ministers. ( 27 ) G9 Accordingly, I endeavoured to give a particularly full answer to this question, — to note down, in a plain way, not merely all the most important Facts, but such inferences and reflections also as the experience we had hitherto gained, seemed to authorize us to make. It would occupy far too much, space to insert the whole statement here ; but as longer experience has only tended the more and more to confirm our belief in the correctness of every thing that is there men- tioned, I have thought it advisable to subjoin, in the form of an appendix to this letter, the portion of the statement relative to the training of Native Ministers.* [ Before, proceeding, however, to enter on the sub- ject of the training of these converts, I deem it needful to call your attention to the principles that have guided us with reference to our admitting candidates for Baptism to live within the Mission Premises, and to our mode of dealing with converts generally. These are points that some have not clearly under- stood. They call, therefore, for special explanation. You are probably aware of the fact, that the class of people we have mainly to deal with, consists of persons that are not in circumstances to maintain themselves : they depend for their support on their parents or relatives. Formerly, when any one of them came to us pro- fessing a desire- to embrace Christianity, if we had * See Appendix A. ( 28 ) reason to be satisfied as to his character and acquire- ments, he was at once admitted into the Mission Premises. This was a step that he required to take altogether without the knowledge of his relatives. Any thing of this kind they very naturally considered as a grievous calamity ; and, accordingly, every effort that could be thought of, was at once employed to induce the candidate for Baptism to return to his family. If, however, he continued to adhere to his purpose, he was entirely disowned not merely by his relatives, but by the whole Native Community. The very circumstance, then, of his having em- braced Christianity rendered him completely depend- ent on the Mission. Many persons will, no doubt, be of opinion, that a mode of dealing with converts such as all this implies, is exceedingly undesirable. Some, indeed, there are who consider it as having very much the appearance of holding out a bounty on conversions, and, there- fore, as being quite wrong in principle. There is no need, however, that I should at all enter on the con- sideration of that question. The system was not one of our seeking : we had no choice in the matter. The alternative before us was simply this:— Either you must be prepared to support and educate your converts, or else you must make up your minds to have no converts at all. We adopted the former course. Accordingly, the great majority of our con- verts were supported and educated by us ; and that too, at a considerable expense and for several years. You are to observe that we were not singular in adopting this practice of supporting converts. The truth is, that all those Missions whose operations are in any respect similar to ours, have had precisely the same alternative before them as we had. All of them, ac- cordingly, have supported and educated their converts ; some of them, indeed, have carried the system consider- ably farther than ever we thought it advisable to do. The special object of our Mission was somewhat different from that of several other Missions in India. Our special object w^as to train converts re- specting whom there might be some ground to hope that they would hereafter be employed, in some capacity or other, in connexion with the Mission. We did not, therefore, proceed to baptize all at once such persons as were admitted into the Mission Prem- ises. As we had to support and educate them, so we thought it our duty to keep them for a time — some weeks perhaps — in a state of probation. And several of those who were admitted did not like this mode of proceeding ; they wanted to be baptized at once. And because we would not consent to do this, some of them told us, after a few days, that they had changed their minds about Christianity ; they were not quite sure about its truth ; and for the present at least, they had no wish to be baptized. Others, again, there were who, before the time of their probation was over, gave such indications as left us at no loss to ascertain what sort of motives they were influenced by. We could not, therefore, but feel thankful that the principle we had adopted had pre- vented us from baptizing them. I might tell you, also, of the very trying and very distressing scenes that we not unfrequently had with ( 30 ) their parents and relatives. The truth is, that there were times when, in consequence of these distressing scenes, we had very grave doubts indeed as to how far we were justifiable in some of our proceedings. But it would be tedious to enumerate all the cir- cumstances that induced us at last to wish earnestly that we could make some change in our mode of deal- ing with converts. I will, therefore, merely state that, after much deliberation, and in consequence of what appeared to us to be good reasons, we resolved no longer to permit candidates for Baptism to live within the Mission Premises ; we resolved also, that, if we were to give them any support at all, it would only be for a short time ; we would no longer hold out any promise to give them support for a period of years. The result of this determination was that for sever- al years we had no Baptisms at all. To other Missions circumstanced as ours is, precisely the same result would ensue, were they to adopt the course we did. It is proper to mention here that several of those whom we have educated during these years went else- where, and were baptized. To this we had no objec- tion. If these persons were really believers in Chris- tianity, their being baptized and supported by this Mission or by that, seemed to us to be matters of comparatively small importance. Those whom we have recently baptized were in cir- cumstances to support themselves. It is a heathen people we have to deal with — a peo- ple brought up in all the perverted ways of thinking that heathenism inculcates. With respect to religious ( 31 ) 71 matters, then, you need not wonder that we should have found it needful to exercise a considerable degree of vigilant caution in dealing with them. Whether our Baptisms were to be many, or whether they were to be few — that was not the point that we kept mainly before us. Our great object was simply to adopt such measures as we trusted might prove effectual in guarding against any one being baptized by us who might hereafter, either by apostasy or by some other way, prove a scorn and a reproach to the Christian name. What I have now mentioned will at once explain to you the reason of our not having had quite so many Baptisms as there have been at some other Missions. You will perceive clearly now that it is not (as some have very thoughtlessly alleged) in any special Divine blessing granted to them and withheld from us, that you are to seek for the reason of this. Baptisms from heathenism are not unfrequently announced in a very loose and a very indiscriminating way. The employment, in any subject, of loose and indiscriminating language can hardly fail to mislead. The idea that you are to estimate the success of a Mission by the mere number of Baptisms, cannot perhaps be said to be altogether a modern idea : certainly, however, it is one that receives no countenance from the Apostle Paul" 1 (1 Cor. i. 14 — 17). And it does not appear to be at all fa- voured by the practice of the ancient Church. t Nor, so far as I can judge, are you to seek for the reason of the fact just mentioned in the circumstance that we have not had quite so many Missionaries as there may have been at some other stations. For * See Appendix B. t See Appendix C. < 32 ) supposing that there had been a Missionary for every class in the Institution, and supposing that all these Missionaries had agreed to act on our principles, my opinion is that, so far at least as regards the mere number of Baptisms, the results must have been very much the same. But our principles were somewhat different from those adopted by certain others. Whether we were right in our principles — that is not the question 1 have been now considering ; — I have been merely trying to point out to you what our principles really were.] 1 will now proceed to give you some explanations regard ingf the manner in which we endeavoured to train our Converts for the office of the ministry. For full details on this subject, I beg to refer you to the document now under consideration — appendix A. You will observe that an account is there given of the way in which we trained our first two Converts ; it being thought that a statement of our proceedings with them would be considered quite sufficient. It is remarked that these Converts had been pupils of the Senior Class, and that they were persons of con- siderable ability and respectable acquirements. But, in order that you may know more precisely what sort of persons we had to deal with, I think it of great importance that you should have some additional information respecting them. I wish you, then, to notice particularly that they were Converts quite fresh from heathenism ; and that, at one period, they were about the very last persons that we should have imagined would ever ( 33 ) apply for Christian Baptism. Not long before this, indeed, one of them had repeatedly used somewhat violent measures to interrupt the preaching of the Gospel. They applied, however, for Baptism, and were admitted into the Mission Premises. They were not, however, baptized all at once ; during the time of their probation, strenuous efforts were employed to remove them. One of them indeed formed the sub- ject of an expensive law-process. But they remained steadfast to their purpose ; re- sisting all the endeavours that were made to induce them to withdraw from the Mission. Of their convic- tion, then, of the truth of Christianity, there could hardly be any room for doubt. You are to bear in mind, however, these important facts respecting them ; — that only a very short time had elapsed since they might have been described with truth as “ unbelieving heathen” ; that they had been trained from their earliest years in heathenism, and, consequently, that they could not but bring with them many of the superstitious notions inculcated by Hindooism ; that they could not but be familiar with many of its degrading practices. From the very limited knowledge, however, that we then had of the effects of Hindooism on the mind, we of course concluded that as they had now been baptized, and (so to say) rescued from heathenism, so a complete revolution must have been, all at once, effected on their moral and spiritual nature. Such, then, is an account of the persons we were now to set about training to be educated ^Native Ministers ; — superior persons in many respects, un- E ( 34 ) doubtedly they were ; very much so, when compared with the generality of Native Converts. To give you as clear an idea as possible of our mode of proceeding with them, I will transcribe a few* sentences from the statement. It is remarked that our instructions in general terms were — “ to give them a theological training, corresponding as closely as cir- cumstances would permit to what is prescribed to candidates for the ministry by the Scottish Church at home.” In accordance with these instructions, the two converts studied various works in Mental and Moral Philosophy, Logic, Theology, and Christian Evidences. They had also attained some proficiency in Greek — having read portions of the New Testa- ment and of Xenophon’s Anabasis. One of them also had read in Latin a part of Crnsar, of Sallust, and of Calvin’s Institutes. This course of study occupied about four years ; during which time, they were liberally supported by the Mission. They prosecuted their studies with assiduity and success. Every thing was satisfactory ; the only exception mentioned is, that we had occasionally to find fault with them for their reluctance to attend the services in the Bengalee Chapel, or to assist in the Institution. “ We have so many different subjects to master,” they used to tell us, “ we have no time to lose ; we are preparing for the ministry.” And so, at length, for the ministry they were pre- pared : — if all that is meant by such preparation simply be, that they were prepared to pass such examinations, in Literature and Theology, as the Presbytery might have required of them. Thus far, then, all matters seemed hopeful enough. The Divinity Students had been successfully instruct- ed ; — quite as successfully as they could have been in any Theological Hall in the world. My object at present being to show the success of our operations, it would not at all serve my purpose to quote any more of the details that are contained in this Appendix. Those, however, who take an intelligent interest in the subject of Missions, will find in these details such information as can hardly fail to lead them to reflect on the pernicious effects that heathenism produces on the soul, — effects which (as I have already remarked) leave a permanent impression, that continues long after heathenism has been professedly renounced. And those, again, who frame systems for the guid- ance of such as may be employed in endeavouring to convert the heathen will, I am confident, find in these details a great deal of practical instruction. There seems to be a very general notion, that any man is competent to give directions on this subject, if only he have sufficient learning, and, above all, an adequate knowledge of doctrinal or systematic Theo- logy. The notion is a most erroneous one. Men of learning may, indeed, construct systems having, at first sight, a very plausible appearance ; but if they have no knowledge but what is to be obtained from the study of books on systematic Theology, and the like, — if they have had no familiar intercourse with any classes of men except such as are of the same faith with themselves,— if they have no correct ac- ( 36 ) quaintance with Human Nature generally, — above all, if they have no accurate knowledge of the peculiar habits of thought and of the mental constitution of the particular class of persons to be instructed ; — their systems, however admirably framed, will not be found to be of any real practical service. From the Acting Committee of the Foreign Mis- sion of the Church of Scotland, there has just been received a communication, of date January 18, intend- ed for the consideration of the Corresponding Board. In this communication it is remarked that “ there is a pretty strong feeling in Scotland that our Mis- sion is not making much way which feeling, it is stated, found a certain expression in some disparag- ing remarks respecting ourselves that were made at last General Assembly. We are all here deeply con- cerned to learn that such is the prevalent feeling. None can be more conscious than w r e are of the slow progress that Christianity is making through the in- strumentality of our Mission ; and, 1 may add, through the instrumentality of all other Missions here ; slow, that is, when compared with the anticipations that were entertained of the progress Christianity would make when these Missions were first established. The reasons of this slow progress we have often en- deavoured to explain. And, after all these explana- tions, it is very disheartening to have the fact so prominently brought before us by others. But what 1 wish you particularly to notice is the system, that is recommended with the view of enabling our Mission to make more way. It is to ( 37 ) establish Bursaries for aiding and encouraging Native Converts who might be desirous of studying for the Christian Ministry. We were greatly consoled when we read this pro- posal. We thought that after all, perhaps, the main reason why people were so much dissatisfied with our Mission in particular was, that they were not at all aware of the progress we have really made. They propose to establish Bursaries. But we are far — very far beyond that stage. The truth is that what we want now, and have wanted for several years back, to enable us to complete our system, is not the estab- lishing of Bursaries for Students, but of salaries for Ministers. This circumstance alone ought to show people what an amount of way we have long since made. The Committee enquire “ what would be the pro- bable effect ot the institution of such Bursaries If they will read the statement of which I am now speaking, they will be able to form some idea of what the probable effects would be. They are effects that hardly any one, I think, would consider to be very desirable. Of course the statement in question has been already before the Church ; for it was printed in one of the Reports. I fancy, however, that most people may have overlooked it, on the ground probably that it was not considered very encouraging. Indeed, in a Report 4 ' that was presented some years ago to the General Assembly, our “ pictures of Native Converts to our creed,” were pronounced to fall very far short of * Report of the Committee on Indian Churches, May 1862, page 16. ( 38 ) those that had been drawn by others. But, if they did fall thus short, they certainly had one advantage ; — they were no fancy-pictures ; they were no pictures of the imagination ; they were natural pictures ; in short, they were sketched from life. It is plain then, that if they were not pictures of the Beautiful, at all events, they must have been pictures of the True. And if people turn away from the sight of our pictures, what must be the feelings of those who have to deal with the living realities ! What a close resemblance there is between our pictures of converts from heathenism and those drawn by St. Paul, I will afterwards point out. I will now' conclude this account of our training operations with a few remarks which may serve to throw additional light on the matter. I called your particular attention to the fact that the persons we were required to train for the minis- try had not been born of Christian parents, nor brought up in the Christian Faith ; on the contrary, they had been brought up from their earliest years in all the habits of heathenism. It waa confidently believed, that if these persons were to receive a very careful training in Literature and Theology, they would here- after become useful Missionaries to their countrymen. Now, the question I wish to ask is — Had ever any one before attempted a work of exactly this descrip- tion ? If so — that was quite unknown to us. For we had before us no experience from which we could draw any conclusion as to how all this training might turn out. It is plain, then, that we were in the position of per- ( 39 ) sons who were going to make an Experiment. Now, for the complete success of that experiment, it is evi- dent that two things were required. It was required (1) to impart to our converts all needful literary and theological training : — it was required (2) that the con- verts when thus trained and educated should be pre- pared to abandon all thought of rising in the world; — that they should be willing to devote themselves to the most laborious, and most self-denying, of occupations ; and all this, for salaries not amounting, perhaps, to more than one third of what they could readily obtain at other employments. In other words, it was re- quired that they should be Christians of the most exlated order. With regard to the first requisite, namely, the literary and theological training — in that, as you have already seen, we were perfecty successful. And, as for the second requisite — it is a remarkable circumstance, but it is, nevertheless, perfectly true that, for a long time, that requisite never seems to have cost us a thought. The truth is, that we took it for grant- ed, that that requisite would come of itself ; that if we were only careful and diligent in the training, all other things would follow of themselves as mere matters of course. But, was not this to assume a great deal ? Un- doubtedly it was. And yet, the founders of our Mission must have assumed the same thing. Of course they did not do so, in so many express words ; nor did we. But tacitly They must have assumed it. There can be no doubt of that. For no one would consider it a very important work merely to train converts to be Missionaries, if he had not the fullest confidence that they would ultimately become Missionaries. Now, had the persons we were training been born of Christian parents, had they been brought up in the Christian faith, we should hardly, I think, have con- cluded so confidently respecting them. The question, then, is — how comes it to pass that in a case where converts from heathenism were con- cerned, we should have been prepared to make so very large assumptions. These assumptions are plainly not intuitive, or self-evident truths. It must, then, have been by some process of reasoning that men arrived at them. .1 will explain to you how we arrived at them. When we commenced the work, we had of course some knowledge of systematic Theology ; but we had so very little knowledge of Human Nature that, as I have already remarked, we concluded that, as the persons with w r hom we had to deal had now made a solemn profession of their faith in Christianity, so a complete revolution must have taken place in their whole moral and spiritual nature ; and we reasoned in this way : — By means of this Mission these converts have been rescued from heathenism, and brought into the liberty of the children of God. They are now most liberally supported by us ; they are receiving from us every kindness, we have it in our power to bestow. Does it not follow then, as a plain matter of course, that they will be prompted by what certainly are the highest of all motives, even those of Christian gratitude and Christian love,-*- that they will be prompted by these which surely ought to be the most influential of all considerations, to do all that ( 41 ) 7 8 in them lies to communicate to others the blessings they themselves enjoy ? A nd does it not also follow, that they will regard all matters relating to salary as of very inferior importance ? To those who have had little or no personal inter- course except with such as are of their own Faith, this reasoning may appear (as it did to us) perfectly unex- ceptionable. Buc when you come to have intercourse with the “ unbelieving heathen,” or even with converts from heathenism, you find yourself compelled to .take a very different view of things. The Facts, as they appear before your eyes, are so very different from what they ought to be according to your system, that if you are determined to uphold your system as in all respects in accordance with Scripture, you will, by and by, find yourself involved in utter perplexity. Sad experience will teach you the need of modi- fying your system— the need, in a word, of making many and great allowances. You are gradually led to take a more enlarged view ; you will pro- bably proceed to consider the case of another class of Divinity Students brought up (not as ours were in habits of heathenism, but) in the nurture and admoni- tion of the Lord. You ask yourself — what change is produced in them by their training in Literature and Theology ? When they have finished their theologi- cal course, are they willing to abandon all thought of rising in the world ? Supposing them to be well educated men, would they be willing to spend all their lives as teachers, or as preachers, among the very lowest and most degraded of the population ? If they were called to a position yielding them five or six times ( 42 ) tlieir present emoluments, and requiring an incompara- bly smaller amount of laborious exertion, how many are there that would feel themselves bound to reject such a call ? Ah ! but (says the mere systematic Theologian) your divinity students were rescued from heathenism ; they were brands plucked from the burning. In regard to them , therefore, it might reasonably be expected that they would manifest a degree of zeal, and of love, and of self-denial, and of deadness to the world, and of all the other Christian graces far higher than what ought to be looked for in the case of Divinity Students who have been born Christians, and so have never been rescued from heathenism. To whomsoever much hath been forgiven, the same loveth much. This, then, is the inevitable conclusion to which our system brings us at last, namely, that, had it been our fate to be born of heathen parents, and brought up in all the darkness of heathen ignorance, error, and superstition, and then brought to make a profession of Christianity when we grew up, — in that case, it might have been natural to expect that we should have been far better Christians than what we now are. But is it not the fact that the generality of people consider it (and well indeed may they so consider it) as a matter calling for devout thankfulness, that they have been born of Christian parents, and taught from their earliest years to know Him who is the Way and the Truth and the Life ? That a notion, which unavoidably lands you in conclusions such as these, must be an unsound one, and, by consequence, a pernicious one — this is what 77 ( 43 ) most people will be prepared to admit. It is quite possible, however, that it may not have been till your own Faith sustained a severe shock that you were able to discover exactly where the unsoundness t / lay. Thus far, then, respecting the kind of persons whom we had to prepare for the ministry, and also respect- ing the manner in which we endeavoured to prepare them. The explanations now given will, it is hoped, enable people to understand something of the nature of our work. They will now perceive that it is a work involving a good many intricate questions, — a good many points of difficulty. As for the work of training, or imparting instruc- tion (which is all that Divinity-Halls contemplate) I have said enough to show that there was no failure there. Our Divinity Students were quite prepared to pass such examinations as might have been re- quired of them. And this leads me to consider the next point that I proposed to notice, namely — II. The success that has attended the efforts made by the Presbytery of Calcutta to ordain Native Ministers. Our Divinity Students having now completed their Literary and Theological courses, the next step was to introduce them to the Presbytery. From the minutes of the Presbytery of Calcutta, it appears that so far back as the year 1858 , three of the Converts connected with the Mission had for- warded applications to be taken on trials with a view to their ordination. And others were making in- ( 44 ) quiries as to the time when they would be required to pass their examinations. The applications were of course considered. But there arose now a great variety of questions that nobody ever seemed to have thought of before. In the event of these candidates being ordained, where are suitable spheres of labour to be found for them? How are Churches to be built for them? And supposing the Churches built, where are con- gregations to be got for them ? But above and beyond all, how are adequate salaries to be procured for them ? These were matters that our system appears never to have contemplated ; — at all events, it had made no provision for them. It is probable that, just as in the case of the second requisite above mentioned, so also in respect of these other matters, it had been taken for granted that, if only the needful Theologi- cal qualifications could be imparted, all other things would come of themselves — they would follow, in short, as matters of course. But sad experience taugh t the Presbytery that not one of these things followed as a matter of course, and, though they held meeting after meeting, they could see no way of surmounting their difficulties. In the mean time, some of the candidates for ordi- nation were beginning to get very much dissatisfied. Most earnest endeavours were made to induce them to remain as Christian Teachers in the Institution; or (if they preferred it) to engage in the work of preaching in the Native Chapels and Bazaars. But this was what the Converts would not hear of. They ( 45 ) 78 had been educated, they said, to serve the Mission in the capacity of regularly Ordained Ministers, and now they began to take the alarm that our object was to make them spend their lives as mere teachers or preachers ; and all this, for salaries that would furnish them with little more than the bare necessaries of life or (as some of them alleged) hardly even these. They insisted on it, therefore, that the Presbytery should proceed to draw up what they called a “ graduated scale of salaries and take such other steps as might convince them that we really meant to ordain them. The Presbytery could not, at once, comply with all their wishes. On this ground, the Converts imagined, that we were breaking faith with them : ac- cordingly, some of them resolved to give up all thoughts of the ministry, and to leave the Mission as soon as they could. They were persons of good education, and being also Christians, they had no difficulty in pro- curing far more lucrative employments. To the Acting Committee of the Foreign Mission of the Church of Scotland, communications were, from time to time, forwarded containing ample details of all these matters. The proceedings of our own Converts were fully reported. Theproceedings also of someof the Converts belonging to other Missions were sufficiently dwelt upon ; to certain of their published writings the attention of the Committee was most earnestly directed. It was hoped that from the variety of facts thus set before them, the Committee would have no diffi- culty in drawing their own inferences as to the future working- of the scheme. It was thought that the knowledge of these facts would lead them to concur ( 46 } with the Presbytery in the opinion, that, for ike 'pre- sent at least , there did not seem to be any very cheer- ing prospects that we should be able to carry the system very much further than we had already done. But, I will now proceed to point out how a way was at length opened up, by which the Presbytery hoped to be able to overcome all their difficulties ; — so far at any rate, as to make a beginning in the work of ordaining Native Ministers. For some account of that way, I have to request you to consult another document, namely — Christian Progress and Prospects in India , under the General Assembly's Foreign Mission Committee ; being Report of the Committee on Indian Chur dies, given in by the Rev. James Bryce , D. D. Convener : — May, 1861. (1 regret to find that this document did not appear in the Missionary Record : it may not, therefore, be so accessible as the others.) About the beginning of the year 1861, the Com- mittee on Indian Churches addressed to the Pres- bytery of Calcutta a variety of communications, in which they dwelt with the utmost earnestness on the vast importance, with a view to the conver- sion of India, of raising up, with the least pos- sible delay, a body of highly-educated Native Minis- ters. And, as what appeared to them the readiest way of accomplishing that great object, they most earnestly urged on the Presbytery, the necessity of losing no time in proceeding to establish Literary and Theological Classes, for the purpose of preparing young Converts from heathenism (of whom the Committee ( 47 ) 79 seemed to have a notion that there must be a large number) to become candidates for the office of the Christian ministry. With the view of encouraging the Presbytery to open these classes, the Committee expressed their readiness to do all in their power to secure Bursaries for the Students : again and again did they assure the Presbytery, that, if they would only set about opening the classes in the Divinity Hall, they need be under no apprehensions of there being any lack of Bursaries. For a time the Presbytery were quite at a loss to know what to make of all this. To the earnest ap- peals of the Committee, however, they were by and by, able most fully to respond. They were able to point out a more ready and “ a more excellent way” of raising up Native Ministers than that proposed by the Committee. What that way was I will now ex- plain. The Presbytery had lately received certain communications from the first convert of the Mission, Baboo Tarini Churn Mittre. This convert was again a candidate for Ordination. He had long been a Divinity Student ; but upwards of five years had elapsed since he had left the Mission. During that period, he had been employed in various situations of considerable trust and emolument. He had thus enjoyed opportunities of gaining some experience and a knowledge of the world. For some time, the Pres- bytery had no opportunity of holding any personal intercourse with him. But the letters he now ad- dressed to several members of the Presbytery, showed him in a very different light, from that in which he had appeared when a mere Divinity Student, five or ( 48 ) six years before. He had evidently reflected serious- ly on the nature of the office to which he was now aspiring. He was a man of cultivated mind, well- versed in Literature and Theology. With regard to his knowledge of these subjects and his attainments generally, it is certainly not going beyond the truth to say of him, that he did not at all fall below the average of persons that present themselves for ordi- nation before Presbyteries in Scotland. Some information respecting this Convert, and also an able statement written by him, were forwarded at once to the Committee on Indian Churches. The object was to ascertain if the Committee were pre- pared to guarantee not a Bursary, but such an amount of salary as the Presbytery, after the fullest de- liberation, considered to be fair and proper. For, unless this were done, the Presbytery did not consider themselves in a position to take a single step in the way of ordaining him. The Committee appeared to enter into the matter with much interest. Both the Presbytery and the Candidate were led to believe that their hopes would soon be realized. [ In the Report now under consideration, there are several matters to which I wish to call attention : — (1.) Is it desirable to establish Bursaries for the maintenance, during their Theological training, of such Converts as may offer themselves for the ministry ? I have neither time nor space to transcribe the answer which is given to this question ; but those who take any real interest in Missionary proceedings will not grudge the trouble of turning to page 32 of this * Sec Appendix page xvii. *** ( 49 ) 8 0 Report, where they will find the subject clearly and fully discussed. They will perceive the thoughtful care that we bestowed on all these matters, as well as our anxiety to make every thing as intelligible as possible. (2.) I have also to request attention to the state- ment (page 42) in which the candidate explains the manner in which he meant to conduct Missionary operations. The statement in question I consider an able one, well-worth the attention of Theologians. The writer is a thoughtful man, and has had large personal intercourse with various classes of his coun- trymen. He is, therefore, quite competent to express an opinion on the subject.] As I have remarked, both the Presbytery and the candidate were led to believe, that their hopes would soon be realized. How far these hopes were well founded will afterwards appear. Will you be pleased then to turn to another document, namely — Report of the Committee on Indian Churches : Given in by the Rev. James Bryce , D.D . , Convener , May, 1862. To understand fully the references in this document, it may be proper to mention, that the communications of the Presbytery relative to the candidate for ordina- tion, had been despatched to the Committee on Indian Churches in the early part of the year 1861. — It is prop- er, also, to state that, at this time, the candidate was in Government employment, at a place some hundreds of miles from Calcutta. As has been already re- marked, then, the Presbytery had hitherto had no opportunity of communicating with him except by written correspondence. G ( 50 ) In the month of December, 1861, however, he ob- tained leave of absence ; and in order to follow out the object he had in view, he came to Calcutta. He was requested to attend a meeting of Presbytery which was held on December 6 , 1861. The following extract from the minutes will show the result of that meeting: — “ The Presbytery having been informed that Baboo Tarini Churn Mittre was now in attendance, invited him to appear before them. The Presbytery conversed with him on various points ; and in particular, on the views that he entertained relative to the mode of con- ducting evangelistic operations in this land, and on his own wish to resign his present employment and to de- vote himself to the work of a Missionary. Being sat- isfied with his views on these matters — Besolved (1) — To encourage the candidate to prepare and send in to them an application to be taken on trials with a view to his ordination as a Missionary to his countrymen. (2) — To prepare a full statement, in which a special endeavour should be made to point out to the Committee on Indian Churches, what appeared to the Presbytery to be the only way by which useful Native Missionaries could be obtained.” Accordingly, a full statement was prepared for the Meeting of Presbytery, held on March 7, 1862. It is to this statement that reference is made at page 16 of the Deport now before you. The main object of the statement was to give the Committee some in- formation as to the character of young Converts, and also to call their particular attention to the fact that the class of Converts from which they could obtain use- 81 ( 51 ) ful Missionaries was as yet but a very small one. The Committee were informed that the candidate for whom they were asked to provide a salary was one of this exceedingly small class. After giving a brief account of the candidate, the statement concludes with these words : — “The Presbytery, therefore, beg now to inform the General Assembly’s Committee on Indian Churches that if means can be devised that shall effectually relieve them of all responsibility as to the matter of salary, they should feel disposed to venture on the step of taking the present candidate on trials ; and (if found duly qualified) to ordain him to the office of Missionary to his countrymen. But until something definite be settled as to that point, they should not feel themselves authorized to take any further pro- ceedings. With these explanations, the Presbytery have much satisfaction in leaving this whole subject in the hands of the Committee on Indian Churches ; assured that they will do all that in them lies to make a commencement, in the work of raising up a Native Ministry in connexion with the Church of Scotland.” This minute of the Presbytery’s seems to have taken the Committee on Indian Churches somewhat by surprise. They were not at all pleased with our pictures of Converts. For an account of their views, however, as well as of the manner in which they pro- posed to find a salary for the candidate, I must refer you to the Report itself. The following extract will show you how the Pres- bytery were obliged at last to bring the matter to a close : — “ December 5, 1862. A communication was ( 52 ) received from Gopal Chunder Laha, in which he re- quested to be informed, if the Presbytery were dis- posed to receive an application from him to be taken on trials, with a view to his ordination as a Mission- ary to his countrymen. The Presbytery, taking into consideration the fact that they had now two qualified candidates, and that one of them had been kept in a state of suspense for nearly two years — Resolved — That it was highly desirable, that the Committee on Indian Churches should be informed of these circumstances, and also that the Committee should be requested to state whether there were any prospects of such provision being made for the support of these Candidates, as should authorize the Presbytery to proceed at once to adopt such measures as were requisite for their ordination.” The reply of the Committee was to this effect — that what their scheme contemplated was the raising of Bursaries for the maintenance of Theological Students, while they were prosecuting their studies at the Divinity Hall. As for providing salaries for Ministers, they had no funds at their command : they regretted, therefore, that they had it not in their power to do any thing towards the promotion of that object. They, however, earnestly recommended the Presbytery to lose no time in bringing the case before the Acting Committee of the Foreign Mission of the Church of Scotland. Here then ends the account of the correspondence of the Presbytery with the Committee on Indian Churches. ( 53 ) 82 Of the subsequent transactions connected with this case, there is no 'published record. These transactions were very few : they will be sufficiently understood from the following extracts, from the minutes of the Presbytery of Calcutta — “ September 4, 1863 — The Presbytery were inform- ed, that the Committee on Indian Churches had handed over the subject of Baboo Tarini Churn Mittre’s ordination to the Foreign Mission Committee, and that a letter had been received from the Convener of that Committee requesting information as to the qualifica- tions of the candidate, and the amount of salary he was worth — Besolved — (1) To furnish the Committee with full information as to all these points. (2) — To take no steps in the matter of the ordination till the Committee should decide as to whether they were pre- pared to accede to his terms.” The decision p of the Committee was at length received. In the minutes of the Presbytery the decision itself is recorded, but no reasons are there mentioned — “ March 4, 1864 — The Presbytery were informed that the Foreign Mission Committee had declined to accede to the terms proposed by Baboo Tarini Chum Mittre, and approved by the Presbytery : and conse- quently, that the Committee had declined altogether to accept of his services.” Such then is the history of this remarkable attempt to raise up one educated Native Minister in connexion with the Mission of the Church of Scotland. * See Append ]% E. ( 54 ) Various and important were some of the results, that ensued in consequence of the decision that had been so deliberately pronounced respecting this can- didate for ordination. One result I wish particularly to mention. It can- not have escaped notice what a difficulty we had in knowing how to deal with our Converts in the matter o of salary. That difficulty was greatly increased by cer- tain notions they had been led to form, from the way in which they saw themselves not unfrequently spoken of, in some of the Missionary publications. That there could be any difficulty in procuring salaries for per- sons whose, importance was so frequently and so strongly set forth — this to our Converts was perfectly inconceivable. The notion they formed was this — that it was we, the Missionaries, who “ stood between them and the people of Scotland ; that, but for us, the people of Scotland would be quite willing to give them ample salaries/’ The consequence * of this notion was that they began to entertain feelings of great bit- terness towards us, feelings which they entertained for a long time, and which they did not fail to express in a variety of ways. There is nothing to be wondered at in what I have now stated. Our Converts had in- deed a large amount of book-knowledge ; but they had no experience whatever, and not the slightest knowledge of the world. People, therefore, can easily understand that the picture I have now given of them is not only a true one, but, in the circumstances of the case, a perfectly natural one. Now, the proceedings I have just narrated were watched with great interest by all the Converts. And ( 55 ) 8 3 when the decision was received, they seemed to un- derstand at last how the matter stood. They now knew who it was that took a real interest in their wel- fare ; they had now got rid of this most pernicious sentimentalism as to their “ great importance,” more distressing to us than any heathen superstition could possibly have been ; they bad now gained most valu- able knowledge ; in a word they became quite changed men. Here then is one encouraging circumstance ; and I have much pleasure in now recording it. Another result was, the resolution the Presbytery were led to form in regard to their future proceedings. The result of this candidate’s case was considered as perfectly decisive in regard to all others ; accordingly, they were informed that, for the present at least , no more applications would be received ; that, for the pre- sent at least , the Presbytery were not prepared to take a single step towards the licensing or ordaining of any one. And what was the consequence of all this in regard to our own proceedings ? Simply this : — in the case of all future Converts, we resolved that, while we should, of course, be as desirous as ever to instruct them in Literature and Theology, we certainly would no longer permit them to continue studying for four or five years under the plea, that they were preparing for the Christian Ministry. And was not this a most proper resolution to come to ? At a considerable cost to the Mission, and with an amount of trouble to ourselves that I should not wish to dwell upon, we had already done what we could to train Fifteen ; — with the unsatisfactory re- sults that have been just set forth. ( 56 ) After all this, then, should we have been dealing honestly with the supporters of the Mission, if we had made a profession that we were continuing to follow out our former scheme in all its integrity, and allowed the supporters to continue incurring a large expendi- ture, under the conviction that we were training* Con- verts for the ministry, when we ourselves knew perfectly that we were training them for no such object ? Some have charged us with having abandoned what they call the ‘ great scheme/ We were brought face to face with it. We had the most ample experience of it. We worked it out from beginning to end. — A scheme whose most striking feature seemed to be that it ended in raising up ministers for whom there were no congregations and no stipends — we thought it wise to abandon it. And what is the scheme we have substituted in its stead ? It is this to teach our converts and all others literature and theology, as far as we are able ; but, as for making ordained Ministers of any of them, we hold out to them no hope of anything of that kind ; — in fact, we never speak of such a subject. Let me now express my earnest hope that all these explanations may serve sufficiently to clear up the meaning of the sentence in the statement on Affiliation, which seems to have given rise to such perplexity ; namely, “the raising of a Native Ministry forms no part of the work in which the Missionaries are now engaged. This for the present at least has been entirely abandoned.” ( 57 ) 8 4 From the remarks that have now been offered, it must not be supposed that any blame whatever is meant to be attached to the Committee for declining o to accept this candidate’s services. The very contrary is the fact. True indeed it is, that, from the manner in which we have been publicly spoken of with reference to this matter, it has been considered by all here that we have been placed on our defence ; and, therefore, that it is our imperative duty to give the fullest explanations. But we must not be, thereby, , understood as meaning to reflect upon any party what- ever. The truth is, that after the matter had been fully decided, I took occasion indeed to state my views to the Committee ; but these views were expressive of any thing but regret. I went over the whole scheme ; and I stated that, from the large experience the Committee had now had of its working, I felt quite sure they must all perceive that it was pre- mature ; and that, for the present at least, nothing more could be made out of it. That was the view that appeared to be taken by all the more thoughtful of the supporters of the Mis- sion here. They approved of our proceedings ; and we were under the conviction that the same view could hardly fail to be taken by all thoughtful sup- porters of the Mission elsewhere. We believed that they also were quite satisfied with the manner in which our operations were conducted. But we have now learnt that such is very far from being the case ; for a strong feeling prevails that our Mission is not making much way. Here, then, a question arises which we must con- H ( 58 ) sider. Is it thought that the Mission is not making much way absolutely ? Or is it merely thought that the Mission is making less way than some of the other Missions in this part of the world ? Now, certainly, it is most true that, in the matter of ordaining Native Ministers, our Mission has not made so much way as some of the other Missions here. For instance, in respect of ordaining Native Minis- ters, our Misson is behind the other Scottish Mission here, — I mean the Mission conducted by our bre- thren of the Free Church. Our friends in Scotland are perfectly aware of the fact that, in a pecuniary point of view, that Mission possesses very much larger resources than ours has. Accordingly, twelve years ago, the Free Church Pres- bytery of Calcutta ordained three Native gentlemen. Our friends in Scotland, however, must not over- look the fact that these three are the only ones that have as yet been ordained by the Free Church Pres- bytery of Calcutta ; and also that twelve years have now elapsed since that event took place. They may conclude from this that there must be considerable difficulty in finding suitable persons to ordain. Perhaps our friends would wish to be informed how these three ministers are employed. One of them is pastor of a congregation here, which, in many respects, resembles the congregation presided over by the agent of St. Andrew’s Missionary Association. The Free Church congregation is of considerably longer standing than ours ; its members worship in an excellent Church ; they are in more affluent cir • ( 59 ) 8 5 cu instances than the generality of Native Christians here. This is evident from the fact that, for the last two years, they have contributed liberally to the support of their Pastor : for many years, however, the whole of his salary was paid by the Mission, which of course is still responsible for it. Another of these Ministers is employed not as a Pastor, but as a Missionary, in connexion with the In- stitution at Chinsurah. The third is also a Mission- ary. He is at a station in the Mofussil. His work very much resembles that which is carried on at Ghospara by the agent of St. Stephen’s Congregation, Edinburgh. The former indeed is an ordained Minister ; the latter is not, though he has for several years been a candi- date for ordination. With respect to the two last mentioned clergymen, it may be almost superfluous to state, that the whole of their salaries has, as a mat- ter of course, to be defrayed by the Mission. Again, our Mission is behind the London (Congre- gational) Mission in Calcutta. About five years ago, three of the Converts of that Mission were set apart to the office of the Ministry. They are employed much in the same way as those other three Ministers, whose work I have just described. The Missions of the Church of England not being in all respects circumstanced as ours is, I have not thought it necessary to refer to them. I may, however, just mention, by the way, that, in connexion with the Missions of the Church Missionary Society here, there is one educated Native Minister. I cannot exactly say how the case stands with res- pect to the Baptist Missions. I was on the point of ( 60 ) making inquiries, but it occurred to me, that there was no need for doing so. For what T have already mentioned is quite sufficient to show that, in the mat- ter of ordaining Native Ministers, our Mission has not made so much way as several of the others. Last year I ventured to throw out an opinion that, when I considered all circumstances, T could hardly regard it as a matter oF great regret that, we had not, as yet, any highly educated Native Minister. The reasons that led me to form this opinion, there is no need for mentioning. I may have been quite wrong in entertaining that opinion, and still more wrong in giving expression to it. For, there are many who do consider this a matter of regret ; they are anxious to have ordained Native Ministers in connexion with their Missions. They have now, then, a favourable opportunity of having their wishes carried into effect. The Presbytery are willing to do what they can to forward their views ; and have, accordingly, transmitted to Scotland, the applications for ordination of three candidates. There is nothing, therefore, to prevent our having, in a ver}^ short time, quite as many ordained Native Min- isters, as any of the other Missions now mentioned. And this brings me to the last point that I proposed to notice, namely — III. The particular class of converts to whom any encouragement ought to be held out to offer themselves as candidates for the ministry. With respect to the particular question now before us, Converts may be arranged under two heads (1) Becent Converts, such, for instance, as those of whom 86 ( 61 ) I have been lately speaking ; and (*2) Converts of longer standing. As for the first class, then, the important practical question is this : Is it advisable (either by Bursaries, or in any other way ) to hold out any encouragement to them to qualify themselves, by means of a four or five years’ course of Literature and Theology, to become candidates for the office of the ministry? We instruct them in Literature and Theology, so far as we can find opportunity. We should not, however, think now of maintaining them, for four or five years, while prosecuting these studies. Indeed, we have completely abandoned all thoughts of training any of this class for the ministry. But many of the supporters in Scotland regret much to hear this announcement. They believe that the training of these converts for the ministry, is a work of the highest importance ; and they are earnestly desirous that the greatest prominence should be given to such training. Is the question one on which Scripture gives us no instruction ? If such were the fact, it would be a strange circumstance. It appears to me, however, that an attentive consideration of what the Apostle Paul teaches us with reference to this very subject, would enable any one to form a pretty decided opin- ion on the question. In the First Epistle to Timothy, iii. 2 — 7, the Apostle enumerates a variety of qualifications which he con- siders as of essential importance for any one who would aspire to the office of a bishop ; which term ( 62 ) he uses as equivalent to overseer , 'presbyter , pastor; as equivalent, in short, to ordained minister. Now, among other qualifications which the Apostle lays down as essential for the office, he mentions, in particular, that — A bishop must not be a. novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. The question which it is of the utmost importance for us to determine here is — What class of persons does the Apostle mean to include under the term ‘ novice’? In the margin of our Bibles, the word is translated “ one newly come to the faith.” Most instructive are the comments on this passage that are made by that profound Theologian, J. A. Benofel : — fxrj vcocfiVTov ) non recens ab ethnicismo conversum ; that is to say, the person whom you are to endeavour to qualify for the office of a bishop must not be one that is quite fresh from heathenism. Now, you cannot but have noticed, that that was exactly the kind of persons whom we endeavoured so to qualify. They were (as I have already pointed out) quite fresh from heathenism. Bengel remarks that the term neophyte is opposed to antiquus discipulus. For an example of this oppo- site, he refers us to Acts xxi. 16 , where we read of “one Mnason of Cyprus,” who is described as being apx(uoo)6eU) elatus : — rvova9ai dicuntur, quos opinio scientiae et fastus impotes sui facit, et vertigine implet : — From a conceit of their own knowledge and their contempt of others, they are unable to control themselves ; in fact, their heads become quite turned. ( 65 ) 88 A gain : recens conversus cruce nondum maceratus est : — a recent convert has not yet been softened by trials. On the inexpediency of elevating young and inex- perienced persons to any high office, Bengel has the following admirable note — “ In omni vitae genere observare licet, eos, qui a sum- mo statirn fastigio ordiuntur, difficulter sibi consulere, ad inferiores vix descendere, afflictorum sorte non moveri, seque ipsos regere et modum in rebus tenere non posse. Maxime vero omnium in episcopi munus haec omnia convenient” : — the import of which is — That in every department of life, inexperienced persons who have been all at once elevated to a very high position are not well able to act prudently for themselves ; that they cannot associate and sympathize with the lowly ; that they cannot feel for those that are in distress ; and that they cannot exercise self- control, or observe moderation. Now, all these re- marks apply especially to the office of a bishop. Such, then, is the exposition of this passage which is given by one who was a great Theologian, and — • what is more — a profound observer of Human Nature. Let any one compare the foregoing descriptions of converts newly come to the faith, w T ith the details which 1 have given respecting such converts, and which were derived, not from any knowledge of Human Nature, but entirely from experience, — he cannot fail to be struck with their agreement. Well worth consideration, also, is an incidental remark of Lord Bacon’s,* in a speech which he de- * The Works of Lord Bacon, Vol III. p. 314, London : 1803. I ( 66 ) livered “ in the lower house of Parliament, by occasion of a motion concerning the Union of Laws.” He thus observes — “Nemo subito jingitur : the conver- sions of minds are not so swift as the conversions of times. Nay in effects of grace, which exceed farther the effects of nature, we see St. Paul makes a difference between those he calls Neophytes, that is, newly grafted into Christianity, and those that are brought up in the faith.” I have ventured, thus earnestly, to call attention to this passage from the Apostle’s writings, because it appears to me that, by a careful consideration of it, those supporters of the Mission who are at a distance might be able, in some measure at least, to form for themselves a judgment as to the matter now in hand. Those supporters have of course no means of obtain- ing a personal acquaintance with young converts ; and some of them may, perhaps, think that our descrip- tions of converts do not quite come up to the descrip- tions they have heard from others. But, in a question like that now before us, is there any need that they should depend entirely on the views of any man in particular ? What inference would the supporters themselves deduce from an attentive consideration of the Apostle’s language ? There seems no particular ground for supposing that the converts from heathenism with whom we have to deal, are better Christians than were those with whom the Apostle had to deal. The question, then, is— Does the Apostle’s language afford us much encouragement to hope for any special success in our efforts to raise up useful and efficient ministers out of this first class of converts — I mean, ( 6 ? ) 89 u Converts who have newly come to the faith ?” And, let it be observed that, at an Institution like ours, it is with Converts of this class, that we have exclu- sively to deal ; and, certainly, it is for Converts of this class alone that Bursaries can be of any service. For my own part, I consider the passage that has been now referred to, as perfectly decisive of the ques- tion. To all that I have now stated, it may indeed be answered, that it would be only reasonable to expect that great changes would be effected in young con- verts, by a long course of training in Literature and Theology. In reply to this, I need only remind you that the success of the Mission, considered as a mere Divinity Hall was all that could have been expected. It was complete. But the changes \ am now speaking of are manifestly such as no amount of training in a Divinity Hall will ever produce. With reference to this point, I will cite the opinion expressed by the Presbytery a few years ago. And I think it of importance to state that this opinion was not formed from any consideration of the teaching of the Apostle ; for, at that time, the attention of the Presbytery had not been at all directed to the passage* The opinion was entirely the result of their own experience. The presbytery observe — “ As for Literary and Theological studies — young converts may prosecute these with sufficient diligence, but rarely indeed have such converts been found to manifest, so long at all events as they continue to be ( 63 ) mere students, any thing whatever of that zeal, and patience, and earnestness, and devotedness, without which it were vain even to expect that they could be useful labourers in any department of the vineyard of the Lord. That, in the case of young Converts from Heathen- ism, there should be such a marked deficiency in the higher graces of the Christian character ; and that Time, among other things, should be requisite for the development of these graces, — -this is what can appear wonddrful only to those who have never considered carefully, nor reflected attentively. The Presbytery, accordingly, desired to express it as their decided and deliberate conviction — a con- viction which is entirely the result of experience — that it would afford far higher hopes of ultimate suc- cess in the work of raising up a body of qualified native Pastors and Missionaries, if (instead of holding out encouragements to mere youths, it may be fresh from Heathenism — to qualify themselves by a coarse of Literature and Theology for entering on the office of the ministry) endeavours were rather made, as opportunities might present themselves in God’s pro- vidence, to obtain the services of Converts who are already in some measure prepared for their work — who have attained some maturity of thought — who have enjoyed opportunities of gaining some experience and knowledge of the world — who have given some proofs of the steadfastness of their Christian character ; and above all, of Converts regarding whom there should be at least some grounds for believing that they had reflected frequently and earnestly on the solemn and 00 ( 69 ) responsible nature of the office to which they would as- pire. ” Such were the views set forth by the Presbytery. Accordingly, it was to this latter class of Converts alone, that they were of opinion that any encourage- ment whatever should be given to offer themselves as candidates for the Christian ministry. But then, throughout the whole of Bengal, few indeed are those who have as yet reached anything like the standard which is here laid down. And let me remind you particularly that those few are all far beyond the stage of mere Divinity students ; they are already somewhat advanced in life ; they are all of them in the enjoyment of considerable salaries ; and if any of them are expected to become Mission- aries, they must receive adequate remuneration. The Presbytery are of opinion that the three can- didates, whose applications have lately been trans- mitted to the Acting Committee, possess several at least of the qualifications which have just been men- tioned. From the Presbytery’s minute, I will extract such information respecting these candidates, as it seems desirable that the Church should be put in possession of. The Presbytery observe — “ That they have long and intimately known these three gentlemen ; that one of them, Baboo Bipro Churn Chuckerbutty, has been for many years one of the agents of St. Andrews Missionary Associa- ( 70 ) tion. .His name must be well known to the Church. It would be superfluous, therefore, to say anything more here regarding him. Another of them, Baboo Tara Churun JBanerjea, was long employed at the Ghospara Mission, being one of the agents of St. Stephens Congregation, Edinburgh. For some years past, he has been employed in connexion with the Missions of the Church of England ; but he has all along continued a member and a communicant of the Church of Scotland. He adheres, on principle, to the Presbyterian form of worship and of Church Government : for this reason, he has declined to apply for ordination in connexion with the Church of England. At present, he is employed as Assistant Professor of Literature in the Cathedral Mission College on a salary of "Rupees 120 (£12), a month.— These two Candidates have had more than twenty years’ experience in Missionary labour ; they are very able men, and have a high reputation as preachers. The remaining candidate, Baboo Gopal Chunder Laha, has not had so much experience in the work of Mis- sions as the others, having for a good many years back been in the service of Government. At present his salary from Government is Rupees 130 (£13), a month. He is a Convert of the Mission, and was for some years in the employment of the Mission. He is a Chris- tian of long standing, having been baptized about 20 years ago. For many years past, he has maintained a consistent Christian character. ITe has frequently addressed the Native Congregation ; and his addresses have been listened to with great acceptance, tic also, as well as the others, is a man of great ability. His ( 71 ) 91 application sufficiently shows how desirous he is to devote himself to the work of the ministry.” The Presbytery furthermore observe — “ That so far as regards ability, attainments, and character, these three Candidates are not surpassed by any Native Missionaries that are at present in connexion with any of the Missions in this part of the world ; and the Presbytery feel assured that many years may yet elapse, before more suitable persons will be found. The earnest desire, therefore, of the Supporters of the Mission, to have a body of Native Ministers in connexion with their Missions in Bengal, may now be satisfied under singularly favourable conditions.” With respect to the spheres of labour to be assigned to these ministers, the Presbytery state — “ That this will receive their anxious consideration ; that, in the mean time, it may be sufficient to say that they are of opinion that Bipro should be ordained minister of the Native Congregation in Calcutta, the nucleus of which is already undei his charge, and that, at least one of the others* should, if possible, be stationed in the Mofussil.” I have now set before you a somewhat detailed nar- rative of our proceedings in attempting to carry out the primary and leading object of our Mission, — I mean the raising up of an educated Native Ministry. I have also set before you, in passing, those inferences which seemed to be suggested by the facts which I was narrating. ( w ) Some may think my statement to be a* very tedious one ; — but this very circumstance should only convince them of the earnestness, the care and the patience, with which we have sought to bring the experiment to a successful issue. The statement should also show them that the subject of Missions is not one that can be understood by any mere appeal to the feelings ; but, on the contrary, that it requires attentive thought and a close observation of facts ; and that from these facts the inferences must be drawn with the greatest care. Some of the notions which have been generally en- tertained on the subject of Missions hitherto, are certainly not found to be confirmed by the facts which I have had to narrate ; and, consequently, these no- tions, we may presume, are not in accordance with Scripture , as I have also attempted to show, in more than one instance. Missions have now been carried on for a considerable period, and much experimental knowledge has been acquired regarding heathenism, and the changes which Christianity is calculated to produce on it. The last half-century has been dis- tinguished by the progress which has been made in all departments of knowledge : and surely there ought to be something like a corresponding advance in the knowledge of all that relates to heathenism, in other words, in the knowledge of the true theory of Missions. It seems to me, therefore, that it is our incumbent duty to dismiss now those a ; priori notions which seemed plausible indeed before experience, when our Indian Missions were first established, but which have ( *3 ) 92 been found to be at variance with facts that are now- well-established. And it is our duty to carry on Missions in that manner which is suggested by the declarations of the Apostle Paul, as they are interpret- ed by the aid of experience. — Experience ought to be considered by us, as affording an indication of the will of God as to the manner in which He designs the re- generation of this people to be accomplished. The very great changes that have been produced in Hindoo and Mahomedan Society during the last half-century, have been chiefly produced by means of education. — Our Mission has been instrumental, under the blessing of God, in accomplishing its full share of these changes. It is very true, these changes are not such as were at first anticipated, nor are they such as to satisfy the wishes of many of the supporters at a distance , who think that the Mission is not making much way. But if there is discouragement in these circumstances, who is it that ought to feel the disap- pointment most ? Is it those at a distance who have merely contributed (it may be very liberally) to the support of the Mission, or is it those who, after devot- ing their best energies to the carrying out of a plausible indeed, but certainly a superficial scheme, have at last been brought face to face with the disap- pointment ? With regard to ‘ encouraging circumstances’ gener- ally, I would have people to remember that, Duty is a fixed and an absolute thing, altogether independent of circumstances ; and that when they have made up their minds, by a careful consideration of all the light ( 74 ) that God puts in their way, as to what is their duty, they ought to endeavour steadfastly to pursue that course, leaving all results in the hands of Him with whom alone are the issues of events. For, it is the very law of the Christian life to 11 walk by Faith, not by sight.” I remain, Dear Ml Chapman, Yours very faithfully, JAMES OGILV1EL APPENDIX A. Extract from “ Statement relative to the General Assembly’s Mis- sion, drawn up at the request of the Corresponding Board, March, 1857.” # * * ^ 3. Of the fourteen persons who have been baptized , how many are now qualified and prepared to go forth as Missionaries to preach the Gospel to their own countrymen in their vernacular tongue ? This is a very important question; it is especially so at the present moment, from the fact that while among those who have hitherto supported the Mission, there is now a great diversity of sentiment as to the best mode of conducting their Missionary operations — some being favourable to “ Grants in Aid others as bitterly opposed to them — some advocating the teaching system; others being very doubtful of the propriety of this system. I say, while there is such a diversity of sentiment as to these and various other points, men of all opinions, and of all shades of opinion, seem unanimously to concur in this — that henceforth, a far greater degree of time and of attention than heretofore must be devoted to the direct and public preaching of the Word, and that u chiefly through the agency of heathen converts trained to be preachers.” Yet important as this question is, there is no one which it is so difficult to answer in a satisfactory manner. In replying to it, I can do nothing more than endeavour to describe as concisely as I can the way in which we proceeded to discharge this part of our work. Our two first converts were baptized so long ago as the year 1847 — the one in the month of January, the other in the month of September. Both of them were pupils of our senior class ; they Were persons of good conduct, of considerable ability, and respect- able acquirements. Very soon after their baptism, they expressed an earnest desire “ to devote themselves to the work of preaching the Gospel to their countrymen ; and they wished that measures should be taken to impart to them all that knowledge and all those qualifications which they believed to be necessary fully to prepare them for such an arduous woik. We were of course delighted to hear this ; and as we had already, in some measure at least, suc- ceeded in accomplishing the first object contemplated by the foun- ders of the Mission, so we trusted that we were now fairly in the way of fulfilling the second one also. We had now two heathen converts to prepare for the ministry ; and how did we proceed ? Our instructions in general terms were — “ To give them a theo- logical training, corresponding as closely as circumstances would permit to that which is prescribed to candidates for the ministry 11 by the Scottish Church at home.” In accordance with these in- structions, the two converts studied various works in mental and moral philosophy, logic, theology, and Christian Evidences. They had also attained some proficiency in Greek — having read portions of the New Testament, and of Xenophon’s Anabasis. One of them also had read in Latin a part of Caesar, of Sallust, and of Calvin’s Institutes. This course of study occupied about four years, during which time they were liberally supported by the Mission — their allowances being, besides a house, fourteen, sixteen, and not ^infrequently eighteen rupees a month each. And so long as they were thus engaged — with the exception that we had occasionally to find fault with them for their reluctance to study the Bengalee language, and to attend the services in the Bengalee chapel, or to assist in the Institution — with these exceptions, we had no reason whatever to complain. They conducted themselves in a satisfactory way, and prosecuted their studies with assiduity and success. By the end of the four years, they were nearly prepared to pass such examinations as might have been required of them. But supposing they had passed all these examinations, and been formally appointed to the office of “Ordained Ministers,” the great and perplexing question was — What kind of work shall we set them to ? This was a question which we really did not know how to answer. We had no English preaching for them ; we had no Mofussil station to send them to, and no pro- spect of ever having any such station. We did not require their services in the Bengalee chapel — the catechist, Bipro, being quite able to do all the work there ; and as for carrying on any kind of Mission work about Calcutta by means of the “ direct preaching of the Word,” the Board are aware of the insuperable difficulties of doing anything in that way. I am of opinion that going about preaching in the bazaars and streets of Calcutta is not a very hopeful sort of work ; and, besides, it is what can be done only in the morning or in the evening ; and, therefore, not sufficient to occupy anything like the whole of a man’s time. Then what work could the two candidates for the ministry engage in ? The question now became a most pressing one — not with reference to these two only, but with reference to others also who had by this time become converts, and who professed to be preparing them- selves for the ministry. Had there been only one, perhaps suit- able employment might have been found for him, but the object contemplated by the founders of the Mission was to raise up not one , but a body; for, as it is expressed in the Report of the Indian Committee for last year (1856) — “The raising up of native converts to preach the Gospel to their brethren, was one of the great objects of the Missionary school in its original programme.” Supposing such a, body had been raised up, what were they to do. In the Institution, indeed, in which we ourselves had so much to do, there would, of course, have been abundant work for largo Ill numbers of converts ; and as it was now absolutely necessary that the young men should set about doing work of some kind or other, <$o we at last found we had no alternative but to inform them that they must take a part in conducting the classes in the Institution. It was now that we perceived something of the real difficul- ties of the Missionary enterprise. All the trials which ice had hitherto experienced were as nothing compared with what we were now subjected to. Perhaps it may be proper here to give a distinct statement of the real natuie and the cause of those difficulties. The Board, then, are well aware that we have always had a very large number of pupils to instruct, and that it has ever been our desire to employ, with the utmost economy, such means as were at our disposal. Accordingly, a considerable portion of the Institution work had hitherto been carried on through the agency of “ heathen” teachers ; that is to say, persons for the most part trained by ourselves, but who, though well acquainted with Scripture, are not con- vinced of the truth of Christianity. These we have of course employed to teach only such subjects as history, geography, etc., in the junior classes. Now, however, the converts were called on to become teachers in the Institution, Our difficulty with them, I will endeavour very briefly to explain. Suppose, then, two teachers — the one a Christian, the other a Heathen — conducting classes in the same room. The two men are very nearly of equal attainments, and discharge their duties with, we shall suppose, equal assiduity. The question now is: How shall we adjust their salaries? We first arrange with the Heathen, and fix his salary at 20 rupees, with which he is satisfied in the meantime ; but this we know will not do with the Christian, so, in consideration of his greater ex- penses, we tell him he will get 30 rupees with a house. But does this satisfy the Christian ? Very far from it. He appeals to the Corresponding Board — he declares that this salary is not at all adequate to his necessities. He has now learnt “ the manners and customs.” He tells us of this, that, and the other expense ; in short, he cannot live like a Heathen— rhe must have an u in- crease.” The Board recommend him to get 5 rupees more. Well; is he satisfied now? Bor a short time, perhaps, he says little about the matter ; but in the course of six or eight months, we have another application craving a further “ increase.” The Board will no doubt remember well the continual complaints about sala- ries, and the heart-burnings and ill-will excited towards myself in particular, when these converts were required to teach in the In- stitution. The question again is : Shall we increase the convert’s salary ? The Heathen has 20 rupees, and he says nothing; the Christian has 35 with a house, and he is not satisfied. Then, shall we increase his salary ? On what ground ? Does he teach better than the Heathen? No. Is he more diligent ? Decidedly not. Then, on what ground shall we increase his salary ? j Because he is a Christian ? IV but he has already, on that ground, 15 rupees together with a house more than the Heathen, Though I have frequently been compelled to increase the Chris- tian’s salary, I could never bring myself to see the fairness of so doing. It did not appear to me that such a proceeding was cal- culated to give to the Heathen a very exalted sense of Christian justice ; and besides, here were we endeavouring to do all that we could to destroy the system of caste, and at the same time raising up another caste no less dangerous than any of those which we professed to hold in abhorrence. Accordingly, we at last refused to give them any further in- crease. Their salaries weie already considerably higher than those allowed to convert teachers by the Missionaries of any other society in Calcutta, with one single exception. Our converts, therefore, seeing that they had no bright prospects in a pecuniary way in connexion with our mission, applied for, and soon obtained other appointments. These are incidents connected with missionary work ; but they are not exactly the kind of incidents that people like to hear about. There is therefore no need to t dwell on them ; the more especi- ally as I am now convinced that some, at least, of the troubles to which we were then subjected, were to be attributed partly to my being but little acquainted at that time with that very particular phase of human nature, which is presented to us in the Bengali character, and partly also to my having completely over-estimated the greatness of the change that ought to have been produced in the views, the motives, and the conduct of a Hindoo who had a sincere belief in Christianity. I have no doubt that the generality of persons would peruse a statement like that which I have now given, if not with absolute incredulity, at all events with feelings of the utmost astonishment. What ! they will exclaim, is it possible that Christians can be so difficult to deal with ? Is it possible that in the mere matter of salary they should be so much more troublesome than the very heathen ? Then, where is their faith, where is their zeal, where is their love, and where is their self-denial? And the conclusion which they will draw wiil no doubt be something like this : — Then these so-called Christians are after all but mere pretenders— they are not sincere in their professions — they have embraced Christianity through some sinister ’motive. The truth is, some of ourselves had at one time almost come to a conclusion of this kind; and yet I could not but feel that it was a conclusion in which we could not acquiesce. And why ? I had seen these converts renounce their ancestral faith, and embrace Christianity under circumstances ol peculiar trial and difficulty. As to the sincerity of their belief, therefore, I could not doubt ; and this latter conclusion has been amply confirmed by their subsequent good conduct* How then, it will be asked, can we account for the difficulties we have experienced in the management of the converts ? V 9 5 "Were I to attempt to answer this question fully and properly, I should require to enter on the consideration of the following very dflicult subject : — What change are we authorised by Scripture , and by reason , and by experience , to expect will be produced {in the first instance, at all events) on the moral character and condition of one who has been trained from his earliest years in a system like Hindooism , and who in mature age renounces that system and embraces Ch7'istianity ? So far as I am aware, this is a question which has never yet been raised ; and yet I know not of any question connected with missionary operations which is more important and more interest- ing. I have long thought that if this question were fully develop- ed and thoroughly discussed in all its bearings by any man qualified for the task by feelings of deep piety — by a profound knowledge of Scripture — by an enlarged acquaintance with human nature in all its various phases — by a sound, philosophical, and discriminating judgment, and especially by a freedom from all bias in favour of certain theological dogmas — such a man would confer on the cause of missions a boon of inestimable value. I do not pretend to be able to discuss the question : nor will my limits permit me to express all my views here. But I will venture to throw out one or two brief considerations which ought to be borne in mind, by any one who wishes to arrive at a correct conclusion respecting this deeply-important subject. Let it be obsefved, then, that Hindooism and Christianity differ from each other, as in innumerable other particulars, so especial- ly in this : that the former lays down the most minute and the most precise rules — the most exact directions regarding every action which it is possible for a man to perform. There is no single act, however insignificant, but what has its Specific regu- lations. Hence the common paradox, “ The Hindoos are the most religious people in the world ; they eat religiously , they drink re- ligiously, they dress religiously , they sleep religiously , and they sin religiously .” Of course there is nothing of what we call religion in the whole matter — nothing beyond the merest mechanical obser- vances performed sometimes with extraordinary rapidity, but with no more thought than what a man would exercise in counting his fingers. What a prodigious contrast does Christianity present to all this? Instead of laying down precise rules for every case that may occur, Christianity, on the contrary, strives to regulate men’s conduct by implanting in them Christian principles, and by leading them to cultivate Christian dispositions. Instead, for instance, of giving a number of specific rules (like Hindooism) as to how men are to conduct themselves in the ordinary affairs of life, it endea- vours to impress on them this great general principle : “ Whether, therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” And so in all other cases. As for the application of these principles, however, Christians are in a great measure left to their own judgment and their own discretion. VI Now, then, when a person, long trained under such a system as Hindooism, becomes a Christian, he feels that in a certain sense he is “ made free,”— he is now “under a perfect law of liberty which sentences I have frequently heard converts quote, though in a very different meaning from that of the apostles ; and they exult in their liberty, and are sometimes apt to run riot in their liberty. It is, indeed, with very great difficulty that these con- verts can apply the principle s of Christianity to the regulation of their conduct. Their former habits and their former modes of thought are apt continually to return. I have long lived amongst them ; and from the circumstances in which I was placed, I re- quired to associate with them, and to have intercourse with them on all occasions, and to converse with them on almost every subject. I have thus had opportunities of becoming acquainted with them, such as few (if any) Missionaries ever had before, I feel, there- fore, that I can state my opinions regarding them with the utmost confidence, 1 have often been struck by observing with what tena- city the feeling of caste and the pride of high birth continue to cling to them ; and, again, their sensitiveness to reproof of any kind, and the obstinacy with which they hold to their own views. Of all this I could relate innumerable instances. Not long ago, for example. I had occasion to remonstrate with a Brahmin con- vert, for manifesting a spirit of scorn and contempt towards some of his inferiors. He acknowledged his fault, but pleaded that he could not help it, “ as his Brahminical feelings were upon him.” On a former occasion, this same man was proceeding to take revenge on some person for an injury that he imagined had been inflicted on him ; but (as he told me afterwards) he was stopped in the way “ by the thought suddenly occurring to him that he was a Christian.” As for the difficulty in the salary matter, that is to be ac- counted for in this way : — They see that Missionaries labour very anxiously among them, and they fancy that by becoming Christians, they lay the Missionaries under obligations to them such as can never be repaid. This feeling is greatly fostered by the well-meant, but certainly not very judicious terms in which they are spoken of in many of the English and Scotch Mission- ary periodicals. These periodicals our converts are always desirous to get hold of. “ See” (they have frequently said to me, point- ing to some passage in these publications in which they find them selves designated — “ Precious Converts” 1 — “ Brands snatched from the burning” — “ Inestimable Jewels,” etc.) — “ See how the Chris- tians of England and of Scotland love us. They care nothing whatever for the heathen, but for us the converts. ’ They would never think of putting us on an equality in point of salary with the heathen. It is you that stand between us and the' Christians, and prevent them from increasing our salaries. Show us any passage of Scripture which proves that our salaries should not be higher than those of the heathen.” 96 vii From these illustrations, I hope the Board will understand what I mean by saying that Hindoo converts have great difficulty in applying to their conduct the principles of Christianity. Again, in estimating the change likely to be produced on Hindoo converts, we should ever remember “the rock whence they are hewn, and the hole of the pit whence they are digged.” An emi- nent and a pious writer* remarks (and to this remark I beg to call the special attention of the Board), “ that censures have been pass- ed on the endeavours to enlighten the Roman Catholics, on the ground that many of them had become atheists, and many the wildest of fanatics.” He admits the fact as being highly probable, which he accounts for in this way: He says “that it is a natural result of the pernicious effects on the mind of the Roman Catholic system, or of any system of blind, uninquiring acquiescence.” Such a system , he adds, is an Evil Spirit which we must expect will cruelly rend and mangle the patient as it comes out of him , and will leave him half dead at its departure. Are such the dreadful effects on the mind of a comparatively pure system like Romanism ? Then what shall we say of such an unspeakably horrible system as Hindooism ? What can we expect of Hindoo converts who (as has been justly remarked) are des- cended from a race steeped for generations in the foulest faith man ever yet invented — *a faith to which Greek worship was refined, and Fetichism is pure ! I am well aware that it is the opinion of many — perhaps of most theologians — that such is the transforming power of Chris- tianity, that it may fairly be expected of a Hindoo convert, if he be a sincere believer, that he will manifest the same zeal — the same love — the same self-denial — the same purity of motive; in short, that he will bring forth all the fruits of the Spirit to the same degree (I have even heard some say to a greater degree) as one would be warranted to look for in persons born in Christian countries, and carefully educated by pious parents. At one time I had some such notion of the power of Christianity ; but long ex- perience, and many a bitter disappointment, made me first ques- tion the notion, and then reject it altogether. I do not mean to discuss the point. The dogma is one which I believe to be con- trary to Scripture, and contrary to reason, and which I know to be contrary to experience. I trust then I shall be pardoned if I venture to express my belief, that it would be well for ministers, in their eloquent des- criptions of the power of Christianity over the life and conduct, to take care that their representations be in accordance with Scrip- ture — and with Scripture, too, as interpreted by that most impor- tant of all kinds of knowledge (though in these days apparently almost an universally neglected study) the knowledge of human na - * Essays on some of the Difficulties of the Writings of St. Paul , by R. Whately, D, D. Archbishop of Dublin , p. 44 — Third Edition, London: 1833. VI 11 ture. T say it would be well for ministers to take care not to give an overcharged statement. It is certainly incumbent on every one to place the most exalted model before him, and to strive after Christian perfection ; but to Missionaries especially, there is a dan- ger (and I can certify that the danger is no imaginary one) that when they find the views and motives of their converts falling far short of the description which they have been accustomed to asso- ciate in their minds with the idea of a true Christian, I say there is a danger of their going, by a sort of reaction, to the opposite extreme, and of fancying that Christianity has produced no change at all on their converts; — it may he even of fancying that if any change has been produeed , it is a change for the worse. I hope and trust that no one will imagine that I am under- valuing the power of Christianity. Nothing could be farther from my thoughts. Vast indeed are the pretensions of Christianity, and I believe that it does bring with it the only sovereign remedy for all the diseases of our moral nature ; but I do not believe that it pretends to produce any so great changes as the above-men- tioned dogma plainly implies, which, in reality, would be nothing short of saying that it pretended to raise fallen man, even in this life, almost to the condition of a sinless angel, I can assure those who attribute such effects to it, that, however bearitiful and pleas- ing may be the pictures they draw, they are doing more mis- chief than they are aware of. As Dr. Paley expresses it, with refer* ence, I think, to the doctrine of transubstantiation, they are “ laying a weight on Christianity sufficient to sink it altogether.” I remember to have seen it stated in some Missionary publica- tion or other, that “ the Gospel could not be making much pro- gress in this land.” And how did the writer attain this know- ledge ? He inferred it from the fact that Indian Missionaries are not persecuted ; it being his opinion, that, in every heathen nation in which the Gospel is advancing, the hostility of the people must needs be excited, and therefore there must needs be persecution. Now, whence did he deduce this last-mentioned assertion? Prom the fact that the apostles were persecuted. Now, I quite concur in the statement, that Christianity is not making much progress in this land. Unhappily that is a plain state- ment of a matter of fact ; but I cannot see that the mere absence of persecution proves anything either the one way or the other. Indeed, it is a very remarkable fact, that the only heathen peo- ple among whom Christianity has made any great progress in modern times have not only not persecuted the Missionaries, but have treated them at all times in a manner precisely the reverse. I refer to the Karens — a people most unlike to the Hindoos in- deed, but still a heathen people. “Amongst the Karens,” says one, “ a most wide and effectual door is opened. The people not only cry out for the bread of life, but make most vigorous efforts to ob- tain it ; and no sooner does a man obtain peace in believing him- self, than he exerts himself to bring others to the same state.” 97 ix This fact alone (to which several others might easily be added) is quite sufficient to prove the utter fallacy of the above-mention- ed assertion, viz., “ that modern Missionaries must needs be per- secuted, because, forsooth, the apostles were persecuted.” But not only is this theological dogma utterly erroneous in theo- ry, it is also most mischievous in practice. Did my limits permit, I could point out a variety of evils which have arisen from the belief of this notion. I have no doubt that it is to some such no- tion as this (viz., the necessity of imitating the apostles in their suffer- ings) that we are to trace the origin of the practice of self-toitur- ing, penances, pilgrimages, etc, etc. But waiving all these points — If Missionaries in this land have not to undergo direct persecution, the Board will concur with me in thinking that they are subjected to trials, discouragements, and mental distress, such as hardly any other class of men are sub- jected to. Year after year do they endeavour to instruct thousands of their fellow-creatures ; every day are they shocked by having to listen to all the objections that European infidels have set forth, and to many others which these infidels never dreamt of. They see that, in regard to vast numbers, their preaching seems to be altogether in vain ; Christianity, in their case, seems to be utterly powerless ; they appear to be altogether incapable of per- ceiving its truth. Then, again, with regard to those who do be- come converts, how insignificant are the effects produced, compared with what had been anticipated ! If any man were to consult me about becoming a Missionary to India, and if I were to tell him the truth frankly and candidly, in- stead of dwelling on the “grandeur of the Missionary enterprise,” and the glories of the same, I should tell him that there is no en- terprise in which he can engage, in which (so far at least as this world is concerned) he will have less glory ; no enterprise in which he will meet with so many discouragements and disappointments of every kind — no enterprise, in short, in which his own faith will be put to so severe a trial. The Board will not, I trust, regard al! that I have now stated as a needless digression. I have had various reasons for dwelling so earnestly on this subject ; in particular, I hope that what I have mentioned will serve as a warning and as a caution to the Board, in any new mode of conducting operations which they may re- commend, to be careful not to excite hopes which they know can never be realised. The Board will of course endeavour to set forth as clearly as they can, what they believe to be the incumbent duty of Christians in this matter ; but they will not, I trust, by any representations, of theirs, lead people to indulge in vain and fanci- ful anticipations, as if any one plan, or all plans put together could, in the meantime, at any rate, be followed by a large measure of success. The representations which are occasionally put forth may have the effect of exciting people for a time, perhaps even of in- X ducing them to contribute large sums of money, but, sooner or later, they are sure to be followed by disappointment, perhaps even hopeless despondency. Could any better proof of this be adduced than the dissatisfac- tion that seems at present to prevail among the people of Scotland in regard to this same ill-fated General Assembly’s Institution ? But the remarks which I have ventured to offer cannot be con- sidered in the light of a digression. As will just now appear, they are quite relevant to the subject in hand. Among other things I have endeavoured to convey to the Board some notion of the sort of material , out of which it is expected that we shall raise up native converts to preach the Gospel to their brethren. The results of our efforts in that way are now before the Board ; and from a consideration of these results, they will perhaps be in a condition to form some opinion in regard to the following most im- portant question: — I have already mentioned that the instructions of the founders of the Mission were to raise up a native ministry, by “ giving them a theological training, corresponding to that which is prescribed to candidates for the ministry by the Scottish Church at home.” Now, the question is— ^How far is such a system of training calculated to attain the object which the founders had in view? This of course is not the place nor the time to enter on the full consideration of so important a question ; at present, therefore, I shall only make a few observations which may serve as hints on this subject. It is my conviction, then, that a theological and literary training of this kind would be well calculated to raise up a native ministry, were the special work of that ministry simply to discharge the office of Pastor. For instance — suppose that this country were in some measure Christianised — that there were native congregations able and willing to support their own pastors in a respectable way, in that case, I think that our plan would raise up a body of well-qualified pastors. Again : — From the Report of the Committee on Indian Churches, it appears they are “ striving to obtain an increase in the number of chaplains of the Scotch Church in India,” Suppose, now, that the Court of Directors were to appoint an order of sub-assistant chaplains (according to a plan of the Bishop of Calcutta’s), in that case, 1 think our method of training would be an admirable one for raising up a body of men to fill such appointments. The Board must not imagine that 1 am expressing any opinion as to the fitness of these Hindoo converts to hold any such situa- tions ; and yet some of them can expound Scripture readily and fluently, and I have heard them make “eloquent” speeches; and they are all of them largely possessed of the gift of prayer. But what I mean to say is this — supposing our object were to raise up such a body of men, our plan would be an excellent one. For is not our plan to give them “ a high theological training,” • resembling as closely as possible the training given to Scotch mi- 9 8 xi nisters at home ? and, of course, also the training which has been given to Scotch chaplains abroad ? But I take it for granted that the object contemplated by the founders was something different from all this. They meant, I sup- pose, that the ministers so raised should discharge the office, not of pastors or of chaplains , but of missionaries, strictly so called. And by a missionary, I suppose they meant one who should re- gard the matter of salary as but of very secondary consideration — one who should be prepared to endure a good deal of labor and fatigue in the prosecution of his work — one who should be willing to go forth among the thousands of his ignorant and degraded countrymen, and sympathise with them — not keeping aloof from them, as if he were better than they, but sitting down among them, and endeavouring, by every means in his power, to commu- nicate to them the blessings of which he himself has been made a partaker. In this point of view, I fear that experience has now taught us that our plan is liable to several objections of a very serious nature For example : - 1st, Bas not the long course of study, which our method of training requires, a tendency to lead such a people as the Bengalees to contract sedentary habits and a dislike to active exertion ? Does it not also tend to enervate them, and to induce a feebleness of body, so as to render them physically incapable of undergoing much fatigue — such as, walking in the sun, itinerating, etc. 2nd, Is it the opinion of the Board that a “high training” in English literature and English theology is the best mode of qualify- ing them for the special work for which they are designed -sup- posing that work to be to preach the Gospel to ignorant people in the Bengali language ? 3rd, Is it reasonable to expect that, after such a training in English literature and English theology, converts should be able (even though they were quite willing) fully to sympathise with, and sit down among, the poor, ignorant, miserable, and deeply-degraded Ryots in the Mofussil, among whom it is proposed that they should labour ? 4th, Above all— Is it not most unreasonable to expect that per- sons who have gone through a literary and theological training, and who have read many books, and have long associated with Euro- peans, and who, as a matter of necessity, must needs have contract- ed some habits of refinement and of literary taste — I say is it not most unreasonable to expect that such persons should be able to live contentedly and happily on the very inadequate allowance which is usually thought sufficient for them — on the salary, for example, which was lately proposed in the circular put forth by the Calcutta Conference ? To this, the reply of the majority of European Christians would, undoubtedly, be something like this : — “ Of course, if these converts have any faith, and any zeal, and any love, and any devo- Xll tion to the cause; — in short, if they are sincere Christians, they will not only be willing, but even supremely desirous to follow the example of the apostles, and to go wherever they may be sent, and deny themselves, and labour for whatever may be allowed to them.” Now, I beg to inform the Board that we have at pre- sent two candidates for the ministry ; and that as they and I could not agree on the subject of salary, I rejoiced when the Confer- ence issued their circular, and I took the earliest opportunity of placing it before the convests, hoping that all differences between us would now be brought to an end. I said a great deal to them on the matter ; I enlarged on the self-denial of the apostles, and I endeavoured to teach them, as I thought, to apply the great principles of Christianity. I received a reply which completely silenced me, and which it never would have occurred to me to employ, had it not been suggested to me on the occasion above adverted to. The Argument which they employed was what is called the argumentum ad hominem — a mode of reasoning of which some Hindoos are thorough masters. The principle of the argument was this, “ All things what- soever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so to them and in applying this argument, the train of thought which was suggested to us was this : How would we ourselves like to be treated in this way ? Suppose, for instance, a Scotch preach- er possessing considerable talents and literary attainments, were sent to some remote district to teach a parish school, with a paltry allowance of say £60 or even £70 a-year, would he be willing to spend all his life in such an appointment? Would he not, on the contrary, strive by every means in his power to impiove his condi- tion ? first perhaps by endeavouring to procure some parish church, and afterwards, if he were possessed of popular talents, to be appoint- ed a city minister ? But you would never for all that brand the Scotch preacher with a want of zeal, or with hypocrisy ? Yet the Scotchman belongs to a people who have long been supposed to be the most religious on the face of the whole earth. And then I was led to ask myself this question, Why is it, in the name of common sense, that people universally are so utterly inconsiderate as to expect from the Bengali a degree of self denial, and of devotedness, which they never would look for in a Scotch- man ? How is this strange mode of thinking and of speaking to be accounted for ? Is it not to be attributed partly at least to the overcharged statements which we often hear from the pulpit, and which we read in popular theological works, as to the greatness of the change, which will take place in every man who is a sincere be- liever in Christianity ? I know not how otherwise to account for it. We are under no obligations whatever to give Hindoo converts such a “ high theological training and some people question very Xlll 99 much the propriety and expediency of so doing ; nor, again, is there any necessity for retaining them in our service, unless we are so disposed. But if we do give them all this training, and if we do wish to retain them in our service, my decided opinion now is, that we ou«ht to take all things into account, and give them an adequate salary. I intended to make some remarks on various other points, such as the propriety of giving these men the status of “ ordained minis- ters,” when there are no congregations over which they are to be ordained ; but to dwell longer on these points would be unsuitable to the object of this Statement. APPENDIX B. I Corinthians i. 14 — 17. I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius ; lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name. And I baptized also the household of Stephanas : besides , I know not whether 1 baptized any other. For Christ sent me not to baptize , but to preach the Gospel. Paul was not appointed a baptist among the Gentiles, as John was a baptist among the Jews: nor was the office of the one and the other, alike. The Jews, even from their cradles, were instructed in the doctrine of the Messias, and in the articles of religion, so that John had no need to spend much pains to prepare them for baptism in the name of the Messias now to come, and for the reception of the faith of the Gospel. But how much pains must Paul take among the Gentiles, who had not so much as ever heard, either of Christ, or of the true God? He preached therefore daily ; and, as it were drop by drop instils into them the doctrine of reli- gion ; and it was no small labour, leisurely to lead them to a bap - tizable measure of knowledge, if I may have leave so to express it. He baptized Gaius, Crispus, Stephanas, that were Jews, who were presently and with little labour, instructed in the doctrine of the Gospel: but otheis who did ripen more slowly to the knowledge of it, he committed to other ministers to be baptized, when they should find them fitted for it. Works of the Rev. John Lightfoot , D. D. Vol. XII. page 459 London : 1823, APPENDIX C. With respect to the practice adopted by the ancient Church, with reference to Candidates for Baptism, I subjoin the following passage from a valuable little work : — “ An anxious wish to increase their number must be felt by all true Christians equally, because they desire to extend as widely as XIV possible those privileges of which they personally feel the value. But it is extraordinary that those of whom we are speaking took measures with regard to the admission of members which would seem likely to deter proselytes, rather than allure them. The candidates for baptism underwent a long and strict probation, under the title of catechumens. It was not enough to profess themselves convinced of the truth of the Christian doctrine ; they were required to pledge themselves to live according to its pre- cepts ; they were directed to perform a solemn exercise of prayer and fasting for the forgiveness of past sins ; and their lives and behaviour, during the time that they had been subject to Christian instruction, were closely inquired into, # Before the ceremony was performed, they publicly renounced sin, and all the pomps and pleasures of the world. This was the conduct of men who were in earnest as to the value of what they professed, but not of men who wanted proselytes for the sake of a party. In fact, they absolutely refused baptism, not only to the members of scandalous vocations, but to those who were exposed by their callings to visible danger of temptation, f And further, they excluded from their society, and from the pale of the church, those who were guilty of any known offence against the Christian law ; and thus rendered the conditions of remaining within the church no less strict, than those of admission into it.” The Evidence of Christianity , by John Bird Sumner , Archbishop of Canterbury , New Edition, page 275, London: 1861, * Justin Martyr, Apol. i. p. 70. — Origen, contr. Cels. 1. iii. p. 50 — Ambr. de Sacram. 1. i. c. 2. f See Apostol. Constit. 1. viii. c. 32, Ac. Bingham’s Antiqu. xi. 5. CALCUTTA : PRINTED BY G. C. HAY & CO., ESPLANADE ROW. XV 100 APPENDIX D. The following Extracts from their minutes aie printed by order of the Corresponding Board. R. Henderson, Secretary , Calcutta: April 13, 1867. Calcutta: February 7 , 1867. At a Meeting of the Corresponding Board held this day — Inter alia — There was read an extract from the minutes of the General As- sembly’s Committee on Foreign Missions conveying their views on Mr. Ogilvie’s letter on Affiliation ; and on the minutes of this Board (of April 19, 1866) regarding that letter. The Board consider it very important that an account of what has been done towards raising up a Native Ministry in connexion, with the Mission should be prepared and printed for the information of the Committee on Foreign Missions and of the Church generally ; as, notwithstanding all that has been written from Calcutta on the subject, there seems to be so much misconception at lion\e on this matter ; and they request Mr. Ogilvie kindly to prepare a full state- ment on the subject to be laid before the Board at a special Meeting to be held as soon as it may be ready. 2. The Secretary reported that the Institution had maintained in the University Examinations of this year the high place which it had reached in those of last year. The Board expressed their great satisfaction with this result ; and warmly congratulated Mr. Ogilvie and Mr. Wilson on the brilliant success which has attended their labours during the past year. They feel that the Church is more than ever indebted to them for the able, earnest, and successful way in which they have conducted the work of the Mission ; and they again earnestly urge on the Church the necessity of strengthen- ing their hands, if the Institution is to maintain its high place. Calcutta : April 13, 1867. At a special Meeting of the Corresponding Board held this day, Mr. Ogilvie laid on the table his “ Explanations relative to the Train- ing of Native Ministers,” prepared in compliance with the request of the Board. There was also read a minute of the Acting Committee on Foreign Missions of date loth January 1867, and a letter from Mr. Cook "el XVI date 18th January, on the subject of Bursaries for Theological Students. The Board having carefully considered these documents, expressed their great obligations to Mr. Ogilvie for his able and valuable paper with the statements of which they all substantially agree ; and they unanimously resolve — 1. That being deeply sensible of the importance of having a properly qualified and earnest Native Ministry, they have much satis- faction in learning that three Converts of the Mission, who seem so fit for the office, are Candidates for ordination ; and they heartily recommend that the necessary guarantee for their salary should be given without delay 5 in order that the Presbytery may be able to take them on trial and if found qualified to ordain them ; the want of such a guarantee from the Church at home having been the only reason why Native Ministers have not hitherto been ordained in connexion with the Mission. The Presbytery consider that at least Ks. 120 a month must be guaranteed for each of the three Candidates who have applied for ordination. 2. That this Board are ready to give Bursaries for the support of Students for the Ministry whenever suitable Candidates present themselves, on condition that the Church at home undertake to pro- vide adequate salaries for the support of such of them as may be ordained ; for it must be borne in mind that there is at present no other way of providing for the maintenance of a Native Ministry ; there being no Congregations here, able to support their own pastors. 3. That the Board again very strongly draw the attention of the Committee to the following paras, of their resolutions of 19th April 1866— “ That as the class of men who are educated in such institutions, and can scarcely in any other way be brought under Christian influ- ences, have exercised, and must continue to exercise, the greatest influence in every sphere of life, giving indirectly a tone to Native society at large, and promoting such remarkable movements as those which, in the p 1 esent day, are opening the Zenanas to missionary enterprise, the Board desire to record their opinion that the General Assembly’s Institution is a field to which the highest energies of the Church ought to be devoted.” “ That they therefore most earnestly urge upon the Church the duty of strengthening the staff of the Institution, as the present high place which it has taken can be maintained only in this way ; and they most emphatically state their conviction that only a man who combines with piety and missionary zeal a gentlemanly bearing and high attain- ments, can do satisfactorily the work to be done. Such a man, whe- ther he be a clergyman or a layman, can find no higher sphere of Christian labor than the Institution presents ; and the Board trusts that at least one highly-educated man may be sent without delay, and if possible, or as soon as possible, two.” XV 11 101 * { Tlvit whatever differences of opinion there may have been from time to time among the members of this Board as to the mode of carrying on missionary work, there have been none as to Mr. Ogilvie’s great claims on the Church, and no feeling but one of the highest respect and esteem for him ; and in congratulating him and the Church on the. high place which the Institution now holds, they feel it but right to say that this is mainly due to his high character, great attainments, accurate scholarship, and able and devoted dis- charge of the duties to which he has been called.” 4. That the Board earnestly entreat the prayers of the Church that the Holy Spirit, who alone disposes the hearts of men to believe in Christ and to give themselves to the work of the ministry, may be poured out abundantly upon the Mission, that, the hand of the Lord being with us, a great number may believe and turn to the Lord. True Extracts. R. HENDERSON, Secretary, Corresponding Board. In the preceding letter , page 48 para. (1), reference is made to a minute in one of the Reports ,* as containing a full and clear answer to the question regarding the desirableness of establishing Bursaries. That minute is reprinted below as it so excellently supports and supplements the minute of the Meeting of to-day : — “ At a Meeting held on Tuesday, 26tli March 1861, at 9 A. sl, in the "V estry of St. Andrew’s Church, — Present — The Rev. J. C. Herdman, in the Chair ; the Rev. J. Ogilvie ; Mr. G. Adie, Treasurer to the General Assembly’s Mission ; Mr. J. J. L. Hoff ; Mr. D. H. Lee; and Mr. R. S. Moncrieff, — Elders in St. Andrew’s Church, — A letter, to the address of the Rev. J. C. Herdman, was sub- mitted from the Rev. Dr. Bryce, Convener of the Indian Churches’ Committee, dated Edinburgh, 23rd January 1861, in which the friends of the Church of Scotland at this Presidency are invited to express their views on certain questions therein brought forward, having an important bearing on the status of the Church in India, and on the progress of its Missions among the heathen. This letter, with several other communications from Dr. Bryce, had been previously circulated by Mr. Herdman among the gentle- men whom he invited to meet Mr. Ogilvie and himself on this occasion ; and, as some of the points in question were for the con- sideration of the senior Chaplain, or of the Presbytery alone, the attention of the Meeting was especially directed to the question on * Report of the General Assembly’s Committee on Indian Churches— given in by the Rev. James Bryce D. D., 1861. XV 111 which, as warmly interested in the Church of Scotland’s Missions in Bengal, it seemed to those present that an expression of their views was invited in the letters of Dr. Bryce ; namely — The desirableness of establishing bursaries for the maintenance, during their theological training, of such converts as may offer them- selves for the ministry. But, before stating their views on this point, it seemed to the Meet- ing indispensable to consider and to declare their sentiments on another preliminary question, viz. : — The amount of encouragement afforded to the supporters of the Mission in their hopes of seeing a Christian Pastorate raised from among the converts trained in the General Assembly’s Institution. After a very careful discussion of these questions for some hours by those present at the Meeting, with the single desire, it is hoped, of gaining ground for the Gospel cause, it was found that they were agreed in the following deliverance thereon : — “ First , That to the eye of sense, the prospects of seeing a Native Ministry raised from among the converts in the General Assembly’s Institution are most discouraging, and that this is a fact -which ought not to be concealed from the supporters of the Mission at large. Indeed,- the experience which has now been obtained is calculated to raise serious doubts whether the sj^stem of training converts in English institutions, and requiring such as may offer themselves for the ministry to go through a long course of Theological training similar to that prescribed for students of Divinity in Scotland, is the system best adapted to qualify them to be efficient preachers of the Gospel to their countrymen. “ Second, That while, as at present, the converts are so few, and not one of them gives evidence of the inward call to the public proclamation of the Gospel, without which it would be simple pre- sumption to hope for a blessing on his ministry, the certain effect of holding out to them the prospect of the secular advantages to accrue to them on offering themselves as candidates for the ministry — by a system of bursaries — would be to encourage motives to come forward which the Mission cannot too scrupulously discountenance ; and, therefore, the Meeting is of opinion that the time has not yet arrived for the establishment of such a system, however valuable it may eventually prove for the furthe ranee of the great object in view.” While this Meeting regret their inability at present to encourage the bursary system, they feel deeply the earnestness with which Dr. Bryce has urged its consideration, and they have been led by this discussion on his papers, to recommend strongly a scheme of a somewhat analogous character, as more suitable to existing circum- stances. Bully concurring in the conviction of their friends at home, that, humanly speaking, it is mainly by indigenous agency that the truth as it is in Jesus can be expected to prevail among the masses of India, 102 xix they would rejoice were the means provided for employing such native labourers as God may call ; they believe that great benefit may flow from a “ Native Pastorate Fund,” — to be applied in sup- porting, wholly or in part, native Christian ministers, either as itiner- ating evangelists, or as pastors at fixed stations. The nucleus for such a fund already exists. The Meeting have ground for hoping that employment for it may be found at no distant period. They cannot doubt that the Lord is calling out men of His own choos- ing, and that He will do so in large measure, the more the subject is made matter of really earnest prayer and expectation on the part of the friends of the Missionary cause. In conclusion — lest any of the views here recorded lead to the supposition that those present at this Meeting undervalue the General Assembly’s Institution as a means of spreading the knowledge of the truth — they would here beg to state it as their opinion that, con- sidering the present position of the great Educational question in Bengal, there never was a time when it was more important that Christian Churches, having Missions in this Presidency, should exert themselves in the endeavour to maintain and to spread the Christian Element in the education of the people. Looking, then, to the wide-spread influence for good which the General Assembly’s Institution has long exercised, and still continues to exercise, it would give to one and all present at this Meeting sincere satisfaction to learn that the members of the Church of Scot- land had resolved to extend to the Institution their cordial con- fidence, and to uphold it in that state of efficiency in which, accord- ing to the judgment of this Meeting, it well deserves to be upheld..” APPENDIX E. The following minute shows what were latterly Baboo Tarini Churn Mittre’s terms, and also the opinion of the Corresponding Board re- garding him : — “ An extraordinary Meeting of the Corresponding Board was held on the 15th October, 1863 — Henry Dundas Esq. in the Chair, After prayer— Bead the minute of the August Meeting relative to Tarini Churn Mittre. Read also a letter of 14th October from the Baboo ; explaining the pecuniary conditions on which he was willing to become a Missionary of the Church of Scotland, and the kind of work in which he should wish to be engaged. A conversa- tion ensued with him personally on these matters. It appears that, in addition to a Salary of Rs. 100 per month he would require “ accomodation,” or in lieu Rs. 35 per month and “ conveyance” or an equivalent of Rs, 25, Also that he desires to XX reside in Calcutta — at least he holds it indispensable, for the sake of his family, to be stationed where there is a European Doctor. Further, he is not favourable to public “ Preaching” to the heathen — as ordinarily understood. He is not of opinion that this is the most effectual method of reaching the consciences of his countrymen,, and it is doubtful if he would heartily engage in such labour : he would prefer to spend his time in the instruction of the .young, the visiting of people in their own houses, and the meeting with young men who have been brought up in Government Seminaries. In these circumstances, the Board feel a difficulty in offering any recommendation. On the one hand, Tarini is in many ways a de- serving person : from his desire to engage in Missionary work he is prepared to resign a respectable Government appointment ; for upwards of two years he has been in communication with the Presbytery as a Candidate for ordination, and hopes have been held out to him that his services might be accepted. On the other hand, however, it is evident to the Board that his habits of thought and his acquirements (while they might render him a very useful labourer in several departments of Missionary work) are not such as to specially fit him for that particular department in which it is the express wish of the Foreign Mission Committee that he should engage, and above all, the allowances which he expects — and which in his case may not be at all unreasonable — are beyond what as a general rule Missionary Societies could be expected to afford. But there is little doubt that, whatever allowances may be granted to h«m will be considered as a sort of standard by all future candidates for ordination ; at least by all in connexion with our Mission.” It would seem ‘that the Committee were not prepared to accept the responsibility of acceding to the candidate’s terms (and considering the many difficulties of the question, this is not to be wondered at) ; for, in the minute of the usual Meeting of the Board of date July 11, 1864, it is simply recorded that the Secretary read a letter from Dr. Robertson, dated February 3, 1864, forwarding extract minute from the Committee on Foreign Missions of date February 2, declining to engage Baboo Tarini Churn Mittre as one of their agents. Had they consented to guarantee the Salary, the Presbytery would have at once ordained him. CALCUTTA : SPRINTED BX G. C. HAT & CO. VARIETY OF METHOD IN MISSION WORK.* In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand : for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. — Ecclesiastes xi. 6. This text may serve as a motto that may he appropriately prefixed to a few remarks on the legitimate adoption of a variety of methods in missionary agency. It is often asserted, very positively, both by worldly people and by many sincere believers, that vernacular preaching is the only legitimate agency that should be adopted in carrying on mission work. It must be acknowledged that preaching, and (generally speaking) vernacular preaching, was the method adopted by the apostles. Yet even in that age a considerable diversity of operation may be noticed. On his great itinerating tours the apostle Paul made it a rule, when he came to a city in which there was a Jewish synagogue, to go to the meeting as- sembled there on the Sabbath-day, and availing himself of his privileges as a Jewish rabbi, to address to his hearers a dis- course, in many cases apparently followed by lively discussion. * Being the substance of an address delivered at the monthly missionary prayer-meeting, Calcutta, May 1st, 1876. 2 But those persons who were awakened under such a discourse, were usually conversed with in private during the week. The church at Thessalonica was one fruit of this method ; and it is probable that Luke was converted during the apostle’s brief sojourn at Antioch in Pisidia. But in most cases this mode of proceeding was cut short, after two or three weeks, by violent persecution, which compelled the apostle to flee to some other city. At Corinth and at Ephesus, however, he continued to labour on, after his connection with the Jewish synagogue had come to an end. In the former place he obtained (perhaps for hire) the use of a room in the house of a Gentile proselyte, named Justus, whose house adjoined the synagogue — a circum- tance apparently so unfavourable as to cause the apostle no little anxiety, until the Lord by a vision assured him of his presence and of ultimate success. At Ephesus, in like manner, he obtained the use of the lecture hall of one Tyrannus, of whom it is uncertain whether he was a Jew or a Greek. It would appear that in those two cities the apostle spent the greater part of the day iu working at his tailor-like trade of a journeyman tent-maker. At Ephesus in particular he thereby secured the means of supporting not himself alone, but also his companions. Iu the evening he would resort to the room or hall, and address the hearers who assembled there. At Lystra and Derbe there were no synagogues, and we may therefore conclude, that in those two cities his preaching closely resembled that now carried on in India. He would resort to the streets or squares, and address such audiences as he found there. We know that, among others, Timothy, then a lad, as well as his mother and grandmother, were converted during his stay in those parts. At Athens he had an opportunity of delivering, on Mars-hill, that master-piece of a missionary discourse which is recorded in the 17th chapter of Acts. It is an instructive fact that his success there was small, not through any fault of his, — and yet success was not wholly wanting, for Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and some others were converted during his stay at Athens. But the apostle’s method was not uniformly the same. The address delivered after midnight in the courtyard of the jail 3 10 4 at Philippi must have been a very brief and informal discourse* but it was followed by the conversion and baptism, then and there, of the jailor and his household. In the same city, a few days earlier, he resorted to the place near the river side, where prayer was wont to be made, and where, owing to the absence of a Jewish population, only a few women had assem- bled. To these he made known the gospel by conversation only ; and the Lord was pleased to open the heart of Lydia, so that she attended to the things that were spoken, and became a believer in Christ. In this last case, then, we have an instance of plain convert sation being employed as a means of making known the gospel. The same means had been used more extensively, years before, by those who were scattered by the persecution which broke out on the day of Stephen’s martyrdom : they went abroad, even as far as Antioch, and there spoke to heathen Greeks, and thus were made instrumental in the establishment of the first church which was largely composed of Gentile believers. It may also be mentioned here, in passing, that preaching, in the days of the Apostles, was not always conducted in the vernacular. Both Stephen and Paul employed the Greek language at Jerusalem ; Paul also at Damascus and Antioch, where it no more was the vernacular tongue than English is here. So at Lystra and Derbe, Paul and Barnabas did not preach in the Lycaonian vernacular, but in Greek. There is no evidence to show that Paul preached to the Galatians in Welsh, which was their mother- tongue, but he undoubtedly spoke to them in Greek. A consideration of these facts will show that it is quite legitimate for missionaries in many parts of India, to employ the English language in preaching the gospel to natives. Our information regarding the method of propagating the gospel adopted by the other apostles is too limited to enable us to draw a comparison between them and Paul. But in his case we see a man clearly called by the Lord to the work, and endowed with special qualifications. His ready command of the Greek language, and his training as a rabbi in the school of Gamaliel, enabled him to adopt the method of combining preaching and controversial discussion with the Jews. The 4 peculiarity of his method manifests itself in his epistles, by the references to Kebecca, to Hagar, and to Melchisedec.* Is it too much to say that this method could not have been adopted, for instance, by the apostle John, whose mental constitution differed essentially from that of Paul ? And are we not justified in concluding that the Lord, in calling to the work of evangelizing men endowed by gifts so widely different, in- tended each of them to make use of his special gift, and of the method best suited to that gift, in carrying on his work P Now, this is a consideration which may serve as a bridge over the great gulf of eighteen centuries, and lead us to the contemplation of mission work at the present day, and in this country, nay, in this city of Calcutta. We may at once cite, as examples, two men whose names are well known here, Dr. Duff and the late Mr. Lacroix of the London Mission. No one acquainted with the facts relating to them, will doubt that both of them had received their call from the Lord. But they were endowed with very different gifts. Dr. Duff’s special talent lay in his eminent qualifications as an educator of youth : Mr. Lacroix was the prince of vernacular preachers. The circumstances in which they were placed, through the in- terposition of Divine Providence, were favourable to the utili- zation of their special gifts. There is no need of entering into details on facts patent to every one here. But suppose now, these two men of God had been compelled, by some human authority, to exchange places : is it at all likely that either of them would have been so useful as we know them to have been ? And were they not justified in adopting, each of them, that particular method of labour, which was best suited to his special gift ? And did not the Lord manifest His approbation of the course they pursued, by causing His blessing to rest upon it ? Now what has been said of these two distinguished men, is applicable to all missionaries who have been called to their work by the Lord. Each of them has his special gift, and is * The writer takes it for granted that the subject matter of the epistle to the Hebrews must be attributed to Paul, even if he should not be the actual penman of that epistle. 5 105 justified in utilizing that special gift, as far as Divine Pro- vidence permits, by adopting that method of operation which best accords with it. Whatever judgment may be formed by man, the Lord who gave him the gift, will not withhold his blessing from the use he will thus make of it, provided his aim be always to make known the gospel. As a matter of fact, various methods of carrying on mission work have been adopted and are now in operation in this coun- try, and it is not too much to affirm that the Lord has owned and does own all of them, by causing His blessing to attend them. 1. Vernacular 'preaching to the masses , though unquestion- ably the most direct and a scriptural way of spreading the gospel, is the method which, strange to say, is regarded as the least successful of all. Even Mr. Lacroix, who excelled in it above all his contemporaries in Bengal, was repeatedly heard to say that he knew of no conversions that had resulted directly from such preaching. In this desponding estimate of the work he was mistaken. The awakening near Ramma- kalehoke, twelve miles south of Calcutta, a place with which he was for many years connected as pastor, was the result of bazar preaching at the Chitla market, about four miles south of the city. It may be true that none of the Bammakalchoke people were actually converted at this market, but it was there they received those impressions which afterwards issued in the conversion of many. Again, nearly fifty years ago, some persons who had come from Khari and other villages, forty or fifty miles south of Calcutta, were in like manner awakened by bazar preaching at a place called Banstollah, four miles east of Calcutta. This awakening led to the establishment of churches in those villages : but here again actual conversion was probably the result of subsequent instruction at home rather than of the preaching in that distant market. But examples of direct conversion resulting from street preaching, have come to the knowledge of the writer. In the rainy season of 1862 a Muhammadan youth, named Abdool Bashid, came from Sylhet to Calcutta in charge of the cargo of a boat. Whilst the boat was lying in the Baliaghatta canal, a mile eastward of the city, he had an opportunity of hearing 6 the gospel preached on the bank by some native brethren, who resorted to that place on certain days in the week as one of their preaching stations. His heart was opened, so that he attended to the things that were spoken. He found what his soul needed, the pearl of great price, and with very little delay avowed himself a believer in Christ, and was baptized at Intally by the Rev. G. Pearce. His course was brief, but consistent. Though he went to reside at Serampore, lie usually paid a visit to his distant native village in the cold season, mainly with the object of making known the gospel to his aged father and the other members of his family. He died in that distant part of the country in November 1873.* At the same place, and under very similar circumstances, a young Brahmin from eastern Bengal received impressions which led to his conversion and that of his wife, about the year 1869. This man is now the pastor of a village church. Examples like these two which came under the writer’s own observation, must have occurred elsewhere : these are mentioned here, simply to show that street preaching sometimes does prove the direct means of conversion. The writer believes that the conversion, about the year 1824, of the late revered Shujaat Ali (who died in October 1865,) can also be shown to have been the direct result of bazar preaching at or near Howrah. 2. Instruction given in Schools has also in numerous in- stances been owned by the Lord and blessed as a means of con- version. It is hardly necessary to cite examples. The writer would name two, the late Baboo Granga Narayan Sil, who died in 1843, and the Rev. Ramkiishna Kobiraj, who still survives ; these were both converted about the year 1836, in an English School at Sibpore, under the charge of the Rev. G. Pearce. Missionaries are often blamed for devoting much of their time to secular teaching in English institutions. There was a distinguished servant of God who for many years held and openly maintained the conviction that it was unscriptural and therefore wrong for missionaries to be so engaged : but in the * A fuller account of this young man was given in the Christian Spec- tator for April, 1874, 7 108 early part of 1851, when a number of conversions took place, in rapid succession, among the senior pupils of the Bhowani- pore Institution, the good man’s feelings underwent a change, so that he determined no longer to persist in his declared oppo- sition to such institutions. He candidly expressed himself to this effect, that although he could not see that his arguments against them were erroneous, yet he saw that the Lord owned this educational agency as a means of conversion, and that con- sequently it would not be right in him to oppose it any longer. It may perhaps be interesting to some readers to know the view which the late Rev. Dr. Ewart* took of this matter. He said, in the writer’s hearing, it would certainly be pleasant for missionaries, if they could hand over the secular branches of instruction to other teachers, and engage solely in religious teaching ; but by adopting this course, so congenial to their own feelings, they would lose an important vantage ground. “ When these youths and their parents see that we devote much time and strength and labour to their advancement in those studies which are conducive to their temporal success, they give us credit for a genuine personal interest in their welfare ; and the confidence and gratitude which result from this con- viction, predispose them to receive with attention, candour, and respectfulness that religious instruction to which they see that we attribute the highest importance.” These words, if not exactly the same which he used, express faithfully the senti- ments he uttered, and on that ground deserve the fullest atten- tion. Their force would perhaps be most readily perceived, if they were applied to the case of a medical missionary, whose per- sonal diligence and skill and self-denial in the discharge of his medical duties must add great weight to his spiritual instruc- tions. A very suggestive and encouraging illustration of the value of ordinary mission schools is supplied in the brief account of a young woman, named Badam, which appeared in the Christian Spectator for January 1874, but which it will not be deemed improper to advert to here. Her husband, Kanai Lai, had * Is it vain to hope that a biographical sketch of this good and great man will ever see the light ? His record is on high. 8 been instructed in a school (probably the one situated in Am- herst Street) connected with the Church Missionary Society. “ He there learnt something of Christianity, but after leaving school forgot all about it. Yet the seed sown was not lost ; it was destined to spring up.” He set up a pawnbroker’s shop, in a place near which the gospel was occasionally preached by the wayside. He heard some preaching, “ and the question soon came to his heart, 6 What must I do to be saved ?’ What he had learnt of Christianity, led him to wish to seek the way of salvation in the Bible. To this end he bought a copy of the Bible for Its. 2-8. He read that at home, and followed the native preacher (who came to the neighbourhood) everywhere for three years, before he said anything to him about his seek- ing after the truth. And he did not read the Bible alone. He taught his young wife — she could have been only sixteen — to read, and together they read the Holy Book. Slowly the light broke in upon them.” Some time after this, and after the birth of a little girl, to whom (to the astonishment of their Hindu relatives) they gave the scriptural name Esther, “ Mrs. Sale, having heard from the native preacher, that Kanai had been conversing with him about Christianity, thought she would call and see the wife.” Shortly after this, both husband and wife were baptized, about the year 1864. Both main- tained their Christian character to the end, the wife’s piety apparently being even of a higher type than the husband’s. She was taken to glory in September 1867, and her husband followed about two years later. 3. The preparation and distribution of Scriptures and Tracts . In this country few conversions can be distinctly traced to one agency alone. In most cases a variety of means are employed, in succession, by the Lord for the purpose of drawing souls to Himself ; but each link in the chain of love is valuable and important. Full fifty years have elapsed since Mr. Lacroix prepared a Bengali tract or school book on the Miracles of Christ. Perhaps he never heard of its being blessed to a single soul as the means of conversion. Yet not many years ago the first leaf of a torn copy of this tract, lying on the ground in an orchard, was espied by a Bengali girl (for though married, she 9 107 was but a girl as to age) who had just conquered the diffi- culties of the spelling book. She picked it up, to see whether her skill in reading would prove equal to the task of perusing this leaf : to her delight she found that she could not only read it, but also to some extent understand it. This incident was the first step of the way, — a thorny, yet blessed way — which in the course of a few years led her to the Saviour. Thirty-five years ago the writer received a visit from a young man of the Kayastha caste, who had come a distance of fifty miles or more in search of a missionary. On conversing with him, it was found that he was acquainted with the fundamental truths of the gospel, which he professed himself willing to em- brace : he then stated that his knowledge was mainly derived from a careful perusal of a tract called “ the True Refuge.” After the lapse of a little time he was baptized, and shortly afterwards encouraged to preach the gospel to his countrymen — a work in which he is still engaged, though his strength is now impaired by long service. That same tract has been blessed as the means of conversion to many other persons, not merely in its original Bengali form, but also in various other languages into which it has been trans- lated. The writer has a strong impression, based upon in- formation which his memory now fails to reproduce, that the awakening among the lower classes in and around Delhi, which has led to large and very gratifying results, had its origin in the perusal of some copies of the Hindi translation of this very tract, which were scattered during the mutiny. Its author, the late Rev. W. H. Pearce (who died in 1840), is no doubt now rejoicing in the society of many who were brought to Jesus through this tract. An extensive awakening in Orissa had its origin in the perusal of a copy of the gospel by Mark, brought to the village by a cartman, from a market where he had received it. A pleasing illustration of the blessing which may attach to the perusal of the Word of Grod, is supplied by an occurrence that took place in the Baekergunj district about twenty years ago. Christianity had found its way into a village named Baropakhya : most of its adherents were merely nominal, but a io few were real Christians. In one house at least there was a copy of the entire Bible, as printed in 1852. The zemindar was determined that Christianity should not take root on his estate. Under certain pretexts he harassed the Christians, seized many of them, and removed them to distant places where they were kept in durance for weeks, without having the means of communicating to their friends where they had been taken to. Their houses were levelled with the ground, the materials of them removed, the ground where they had stood was ploughed up, and planted over with vegetables, &o. so that a stranger would have been unable to perceive that a village had ever existed there. The goods and chattels of the poor people were annexed by the tenants from a distance who had helped in the work of destruction. The Bible referred to came into the possession of one of these, who, when his children wanted to have a paper kite, tore out some of the leaves to make one. A young man from a neighbouring village, a carpenter, hap- pening to visit him, noticed the large book, and was sorry to see it undergoing this process of gradual destruction. He begged that he might be allowed to have it, and his request was granted — possibly for a consideration He took it home, and with his father began to read it, and continued doing so for months. Both were impressed ; and at length the old man thought it was time to come to a decision. Consequently he invited the brahmans of his acquaintance to spend an evening with him for the purpose of religious discussion. Many came, and the discussion over the book was prolonged till near day- break, when the old man told his friends, that their arguments had confirmed rather than shaken his conviction that they were wrong and the book right, — and that therefore his mind was made up to have done with Hinduism. After a while both father and son sought Christian instruction, and ultimately were baptized. The precious volume was read and re-read, and then sent to Calcutta to be bound, with instructions that the owners would greatly prefer receiving back the identical copy, though incomplete, to having a new one substituted for it, with which the old association of ideas and feelings could have no intimate connection. Both maintained a Christian course for years. The son died in the faith some time ag o ; 11 108 regarding the father the writer has no information, hut he has no doubt of the genuineness of bis conversion also. Having thus been led to refer to the Backergunj district, he may be permitted to speak of it a little longer. It is not impossible that the Lord may occasionally, for wise purposes, use extraordinary means for bringing about the con- version of particular individuals. Are we authorized to limit Him, or to restrict Him to the use of our instrumentalities P How then could we account for the conversion of Cornelius P Thoughts like these have often led him to check himself, when inclined to reject, as utterly undeserving of credit, the account of the way in which a man, named Kangali, steadily professed himself to have been brought to a knowledge of the gospel. He has heard the narrative from Kangali’s own lips, and has no reason to doubt the man’s sincerity or veracity, whatever may be thought of the faithfulness of his memory or the com- pleteness of the view he took of his mental impressions. From a period somewhat anterior to the year 1840, there existed among the Nomo-sudras (nick-named Chandals by the Brahmans) of the northern part of Backergunj, a sect who appear to have borne the name of Karta-bhoja (worshippers of the Creator), a name which has been assumed by various Bengali sects in various localities. Their great principle was the re- jection of idolatry and of subjection to the Brahmans, and the worship of the Being whom they called Karta , or Creator (or Lord). In refusing subjection to the Brahmins, however, they trespassed on political ground ; for all their landed pro* prietors were Brahmans who treated them tyrannically, and by refusing to be any longer subject to them, they intended, if possible, to deliver themselves not only from their tyranny, but also from the obligation to pay rent, or at least any exactions over and above the legal rent. The men were thorottghly in earnest in their opposition to idolatry, caste and priestcraft, and in the observance of a very simple and withal very defective form of worship. Kangali, whose name has been mentioned, was their recognised head, a tall fine looking man of consider- able energy, but ignorant and apparently destitute of mental superiority, though he kept the whole band in strict obedience to himself. The account he gave of the way in which he was 12 led to a knowledge of Christ, is substantially as follows. He had a very severe illness — probably typhoid fever — which re- sisted all the appliances within his reach, so that he began to despair of recovery. One night, as he was lying awake, he saw a shining person who approached him and said, “ Pray in the name of Rishu Khrist, and you will get well.” In the morning, feeling no better, he thought he might as well follow the advice that had been given him ; he prayed to Rishu Khrist , to make him well, and from that moment he began decidedly to improve, and after a time was restored to health. He now began to wonder who Rishu Khrist might be : one day, as he was walking along, he met a man with a tract in his hand. On his inquiring what book it was, he was told it was an account of the life of Rishu Khrist — the vulgar pronunciation of the Saviour’s name then current in those parts — he had just re- ceived it at a weekly market, having simply, in taking it, followed the example of others who asked and got such books from a preacher, but now he had got it, he hardly knew what to do with it, as he could not read. Kangali himself was no reader, but some of his disciples were : so being very anx- ious to know more of Rishu Khrist, he prevailed upon the man to give the tract to him. Pie took it to the rendez-vous of his disciples, and a good part of that night was spent in hearing the tract read out aloud at their meeting. Kangali having received an impression that other tracts might be obtained occasionally at markets, issued instructions to his disciples to collect as many different tracts as they could get. r Phat part of the district was then but rarely visited by preachers : how- ever, about a dozen different tracts were obtained ; the scribes connected with the band — not very skilful ones — were ordered to copy them out, and then they were circulated among the men. The writer has seen a manuscript book containing such copies of more than ten tracts. In this way a knowledge of gospel truth was diffused among these people ; and about the year 1842 they cautiously began to seek out and converse with native preachers. At first a small company was baptized, about the end of 1844 ; and a larger number, one hundred and ten, were baptized about July 1845. This was the origin of the movement in the Backergunj district, where the body of Chris- 13 109 tians now numbers about a thousand families, including nearly a thousand communicants, At the end of February 1847, the writer accompanied the Rev. G. Pearce on a tour of inspection, in the course of which it was ascertained that some of the people, especially those at Digalia, had suffered heavy persecution from their Brahman landlords, and that there were among them a fair number of apparently sincere believers, although their notions on the questions connected with land and rent constituted a source of great perplexity. At the close of the same year Mr. Pearce and the writer visited the people once more, spending nearly six weeks among them, and on that occasion both were deeply impressed with the importance of another means of spreading the gospel, to which their attention had not be£h specially directed before. 4. The singing of Christian hymns was discovered to be the principal instrumentality by which a knowledge of the gospel had been and was being diffused by and around these new converts. The means of regular instruction with which they had been supplied were very scanty and very imperfect, owing to the sudden manifestation and rapid expansion of the movement, which called for more numerous and better qualified preachers then were found to be available. But the people had learnt from those preachers that were sent, and from other brethren who found their way among them, a number of Bengali hymns, with the tunes of which — being mostly tunes that were in use among the Vaishnavas or other Hindus — it was easy for them to become familiar. At one place in particular (Koligaon) the deputation witnessed one of these gatherings for singing. The number of Christians in that village was very small ; but all were eager to be present, and they sung not merely at the top of their voices, but, what was far better, from their hearts. The writer especially remembers one hymn being sung there, with the author of which he was personally acquainted, and which he had read before, without ever being specially im- pressed by it. It is the one beginning with the words, “ Jisu paramdhan, T&re jatna kara amar man,” i. e ., li Jesus is the chief treasure, pay Him assiduous attention, 0 my soul. ,, It was impossible not to be struck with the depth of feeling ex* 14 pressed iu every countenance, and with the eager interest manifested by the crowd of their heathen neighbours that surrounded the gathering. Never to his dying day will the writer forget the emotion which he experienced in that hour, when this touching hymn was sang in that remote corner of swampy Backergunj. Such meetings for singing were at that time common among those people, and were frequently, as was most meet and desirable, connected with prayer. It may be remarked here, that a very large proportion of our older Ben- gali hymns embody a simple but impressive statement of the leading facts of gospel history, and thereby are well adapted to the purpose of conveying instruction to enquirers ; whilst an equally large proportion contain direct appeals to the uncon- verted, urging them to seek the salvation of their souls, by believing in Christ without defay. 5. In the course of the same tour of inspection an occasion also occurred which showed the impressiveness of a convert's oral statement of his experience . Near a large village — or township — called Kotwalipara, beyond which Calcutta boats were not well able to proceed, there was to be held a meeting for the purpose of ascertaining, as far as practicable, . the knowledge and character of the new converts. An awning was made of the sails of two or three boats, to shelter the company from the sun, and partially also from the gaze of the heathen population. The Christians of the surrounding villages, which were nearly all of them several miles off, were invited to come to this “ tent” at a particular time. It was not expected that very many would have the courage to come, considering the violent character of their Brahman neighbours. However, about ninety men and a score of women made their appearance, and the tent (such as it was) was surrounded by a numerous crowd of Hindus. After the preliminary devotional exercises were concluded, the writer, in accordance with a previous arrange- ment, commenced the examination of the converts by calling upon a venerable and prepossessing looking old man of about sixty, to state what he knew of the gospel. The questions were put as kindly and as simply as possible : still the old man, evidently very timid, and possibly not quite able to make out a foreigner’s accent, maintained a long silence. At 110 15 length, when he saw that he was not going to be let oh, he said, “ Sir, I am an ignorant old man, I never learnt to read, and I do not think I can answer your questions.” On being asked, how his Christian knowledge and character could then be ascertained, he replied, “ Sir, I can pray ; if you like, I will offer a prayer.” On being encouraged to do so, he fell flat on the ground, and in this humble position offered up a most affecting prayer, evidently extemporised, but expressed in most appropriate language, with the deepest feeling, and containing ample proof that he not only knew, but trusted and loved the Saviour whom he professed. The impression pro- duced by that prayer was most profound, at least upon the Christians who were present, and who spoke of it for years afterwards. Whether it also produced a salutary impression upon the still more numerous heathen bystanders, will be seen on the last great day. The good old man lived a consistent Christian life for a few years longer, until he was called away. In his dying moments he firmly believed he could hear the music of angels that were deputed to convey his soul to his . beloved Master, into whose presence he was about to enter. J. W. U^Jt-^-f 't&?f 9 ■ X v t a ^ ( ^*o &L^^£4 jL^_^cs£ t '_^> 4 . 1 1 1 THE E RAH MO SOMAJ. Paper by the Key. P. Jardine, b. d., sc. d. Church of Scotland Mission , Calcutta. In presenting before this Conference some account of rev. dr. jar- this well known religious movement in India, I shall begin DINE ‘ by mentioning some important events connected with its history, especially during the last ten years. Every one is quite familiar with the name of the famous Pajah Pam Mohan Poy as connected with the beginning of this im- Rajah Ram portant movement. It was about the year 1830, just three MohanR °y* years before the death of this emirfent man, that the Somaj was first established. About one decade after its establish- ment, or in the year 1841, Baboo Debendra Nath Tagore Debendra Nath, became a leader of the Somaj, and under his leadership con- Ta s° re * siderable progress was made towards separation from orthodox Hinduism. The work of Rajah Pam Mohan Pov, although in some respects perhaps more valuable than that of any of his successors, appears to have been chiefly des- tructive with reference to existing Hindu religious customs and beliefs. He did not form a sect ; he did not establish a system or mode of worship. This work was accomplished by Baboo Debendra Nath Tagore, and in him we have con- sequently the immediate founder of the Somaj as an organ- ized body with a peculiar form of public worship^ Only a few years before the beginning of the decade which is now terminating, about the year 1857, the Somaj Baboo Kesbub was joined by a young man who has since occupied a pro- 0hunder i3eri * minent position as a leader of the movement. Baboo Keshub Chunder Sen, for it was he, continued for a few years in connection with the Somaj of which Baboo Deben- dra Nath Tagore was the leader. But about the beginning of the now-expiring decade, influences were at work which finally led to a separation. The Brahmo Somaj, in its entirety, may be looked upon as a development of Hindu- ism, brought- about chiefly by the influence of the contact with minds of another race and another, religion. Now as progressing in every society of man, so in this Somaj, there arose a ®. nd