myself. I could have baptized these people, but then the burden of a large family was the difficulty, and I let the opportunity pass. This perhaps was wrong, but I was powerless as to supporting them.

bold to say that, were I a Jesuit, or had I a Jesuit's means, I could baptize a hundred persons in the year. Nay, if I could secure a bare livelihood, in the shape of situations, I could baptize many. Not more than two months ago a man came fifty miles to be baptized, but I had no reason to believe that he had any thing in view beyond a livelihood, and I sent him away. In Goobbee, a brahmin, once came to me on the Saturday night, and urged me to baptize him at the public service next morning, saying, I must not delay. He offered me his sacred thread to convince me that he was in earnest.-I enquired if he had any debts, and he confessed that his creditors were pressing him. I suppose he thought he should throw his debts upon me by becoming a Christian. I knew him well, and knew his character was not good, and refused to take his sacred thread, or to baptize him. Another brahmin, of whose sincerity I had no doubt, actually took off his sacred thread, in a private room, and gave it into my hands, to convince me that he was sincere. These things shew that Hinduism is fast loosing its hold upon even the brahmins; and I attribute it all to Missions, and the distribution of the word of God.

"About four months ago, another Rajput came to my house, and in the midst of a conversation upon religion, he repeated page after page of Mr. William Campbell's Sermons. I was for some time at a loss to know what he was repeating, for he spoke very rapidly, and what he said was evidently well committed to memory. He told me he constantly read these Sermons and our Scriptures, and prayed to God morning and night through Jesus Christ. His statement is authenticated by one who is now a Christian, and lived several years in his house. Missionaries have not laboured in vain. The seed sown by our predecessors has been and will yet be found by us. The seed we are scattering will be found by our successors. Brethren, pray for us, that the Word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified, even as it is amongst you.'

The last point illustrative of the growth of knowledge and increase of liberal ideas among the Hindus is seen in the change of their opinions respecting practices in their own system.

The subject of the Second Marriage of Hindu Widows is beginning to excite strong attention amongst the Brahmins of Bangalore. Some time ago a very valuable tract about it was written in Sanskrit by a learned Pandit in the North. Mr. Wilkinson, a civilian, who knew this Brahmin only from his learning, was so much struck with its reasoning, and its bold

exposure of the horrid system of perpetual widowhood, that he wrote a long and valuable Essay in English to accompany the Sanskrit tract. This was sent to the Commissioner of the Mysore, together with the Tract, which he handed over to the Divan who has had it translated into Canarese. The Commissioner has sanctioned the printing of 1000 copies at the Government Press. This translation was brought to Mr. H. early in the year, and after reading it carefully he began to talk about it amongst the brahmins. They almost all approve of the Second Marriage of Widows, but cannot see how it can be brought about.-So much interest is the subject exciting, that two brahmins have visited him several times urging him to assist in bringing about so desirable a result. They said, we have each a daughter, a widow: one twenty years old, the other fifteen; and we don't know how to save them from ruin. He was much gratified to find only one old Pandit who opposed the Second Marriage of Hindu Widows. He became very angry with the other brahmins, and said they were all going over to the Missionary, were bringing disgrace upon their own religion, and were giving the Missionary an insight into all their secret matters.—Another brahmin came and said, he would obtain the signatures of almost every brahmin in Bangalore in its favour, if Mr. H. wished. The Tract first spoken of is nearly printed, and when once circulated, it will doubtless produce great excitement. But this tract has had a narrow escape. The brahmin who had the original translation of the book wrote to Mr. H. in great perplexity saying, the Commissioner had sanctioned the printing of the book, but he could nowhere find the Manuscript. It had created much bad feeling on the part of the more rigid brahmins, and the manuscript had probably been destroyed by some of them. Fortunately, he had had the whole carefully copied, and the book is actually being printed from that manuscript. It may be perceived from these things that there is a friendship springing up between the more liberal brahmins and the missionaries which, in a few years, we trust, may lead to great results.

Infanticide, is perhaps the most glaring evil connected with the perpetual widowhood of the Hindu females. Thousands of young girls who have lost their husbands have their heads shaven and are doomed to perpetual degradation. The consequences of their ill-treatment are, they become prostitutes, and numbers of infants, the fruits of illicit intercourse, never see the light of day. Infanticide, though strictly forbidden by the law, is in this way carried to a very fearful extent. Several brahmins have asserted that no less than thirty infants are in this way destroyed every month in the year, in the one town of Bangalore alone.

THE GERMAN EVANGELICAL MISSION.

The west coast of the Madras Presidency from Honore to Calicut, including the provinces of CANARA and MALABAR, has been taken as a missionary sphere by the EVANGELICAL SOCIETY of BASEL. The country is but a narrow slip of land, between the western ghauts and the sea; it is hilly but fertile; and contains several large seaport towns, amongst which Mangalore and Cannanore are best known. The languages spoken are the Canarese, the Tulu and the Máleálim. All these tongues are ancient; and two of them contain an extensive native literature. It was the opening of Hindustan to foreign as well as English missionaries by the Company's Charter of 1833, that first led the Basel missionaries to settle in the country. The western coast of India, except Bombay and Travancore, had never been entered by other than Jesuit missionaries, and finding it still unoccupied, the Basel Committee anxious not to interfere in any way with the efforts of other Societies, but rather to preach to those that were left in ignorance, under the advice of friends in Bombay, adopted it as their sphere of labour. Three missionaries were therefore sent to Mangalore in 1834; and there established the first station of the mission. Four others followed in 1836, when Dharwar above the ghauts, in the very north of the Canarese country, was occupied. In 1838 a third mission was commenced to the south of Mangalore at Tellicherry among the Máleális; and on the arrival of five new brethren in the same year, a fourth station was fixed near Dharwar at New Hoobly. Putting forth its strength with earnestness and vigour, the Society despatched five more missionaries in 1840, and yet five others in 1842: upon which important missions were commenced at Cannanore upon the sea coast, at Bettigherry and also at Calicut. The climax of its European strength was reached by the mission about 1845: at which time twenty-six missionaries were engaged in the service of the Society. Since that year it has done little more than efficiently maintain the stations previously established, and allow for the absence of the usual proportion of invalids.

The mission, which thus sprang into maturity in less than twenty years, has been carried on with the vigour and energy which first led to its formation. The numerous introductory labours required every where at the outset of such undertakings have long been completed. Every station has its mission-houses, its school-buildings and its church; to

which in the two principal stations have been added printing-offices and industrial schools. The missionaries have therefore long since been able to devote an undivided attention to the spiritual objects of their toil. In order to secure that end, they have pursued, to a great extent, the same plans as have been adopted by other Societies in other localities throughout Hindustan. They have preached the gospel in the vernacular tongues at their immediate stations, and by continued and extensive itinerancies, have carried it to the distant villages and towns, among whom their lot has been cast. Where a demand existed for English education they have established christian English schools; and have elsewhere offered a christian education in the native tongues alone. For the benefit of their native christians, they have maintained christian boarding schools and an industrial school to improve their means of livelihood. For the enlightenment of all, christian and heathen, they have engaged in the translation and circulation of the scriptures, and have kept two printing presses constantly employed. All these varieties of agency employed in faith, and sanctified by prayer, have received a blessing from on high: and the fruits of success which they are able already to exhibit, must be regarded by all interested in that agency with astonishment and thankfulness.

Nor should it be forgotten that in their labours, the missionaries of the Basle Society, in adopting plans similar to those of other missionaries in other parts of India, have met with a similar experience. They have found the same dense ignorance of the first principles of religion in Canara and Malabar, which have been met in north and eastern India. The same opposition to truth, the same love of idolatry in the Hindu, the same bigotry in the Musalman Moplah, have resisted them as have depressed others. Some converts have deceived them, who came for gain : others have backslidden, who were weak. Boys have run away from their boarding schools, and orphan girls proved incorrigibly wicked. Young people have been pressed forward into the church too soon; churchmembers have refused to give up caste; day-schools that promised well have been given up; and new converts have been forcibly carried back into hopeless heathenism. Thus they have fallen into the same mistakes of inexperience, as have been committed by others and have met with similar difficulties. But their work has been well based and though yet in "the day of small things" has made solid progress.

At the present time, when the oldest station has not been established twenty years, the Basel Society possesses in western India, thirteen principal stations, and twenty out-stations. At these localities the more direct

missionary work is carried on by twenty-eight missionaries, of whom seventeen are married; and by sixty-three catechists. At each of the chief stations there is a christian congregation gathered from the natives of the place and of its neighbourhood; the church-members or communicants amounting to 750, and the christian community including 1578 individuals. The chief schools are vernacular boys' schools: of which nearly fifty are maintained, instructing sixteen hundred scholars. The boys' boarding schools, three in number, contain sixty-three boys: and the girls' boarding schools, one hundred and fifty-one girls. All these schools have christian masters. Ninety-six boys are studying English in two English schools. Industrial schools are maintained at Tellicherry and Mangalore, for the instruction of christian lads in agriculture, weaving and other employments suitable to their station in life. In the school at Mangalore are also taught watch and clock making, the construction of musical boxes, electro-plating, the weaving of shawls and handkerchiefs, book-binding and printing. Two printing-presses have for many years been maintained at Mangalore and Tellicherry: the former for the Canarese and Tulu books: the latter for Máleáli. The former press was a lithographic press, but has recently exchanged the lithograph for types. Last but not least, there is a Theological class at Mangalore for training christian teachers and preachers for the service of the mission. From this institution, nine young men were sent forth into the mission A seminary for the training of school-masters is to be added when circumstances allow. Such is the amount of agency zealously applied by the missionaries of the Society for the spread of Christianity in the provinces which they occupy; and such are some of the results with which their labours have been followed.

in January, 1852.

For the sake of greater distinctness, a few words may be added concerning the differences observable in the labours of particular localities. The Basle missions are carried on in three separate districts and are therefore divided into three distinct groupes: viz. the purely Canarese mission in the DHARWAR district: the mixed Canarese and Tulu mission in north Canara, the head-quarters of which are at MANGALORE and the Máleálim mission in Malabar, at CANNANORE, Tellicherry and Calicut. The station among the Nilgiri hills must be reckoned separately: it being not only the Sanatarium of the Society, but a distinct mission for the local hill tribes.