i~/ -^ LIBRA^RY Theological Seminary, PRINCETON, N. J. - BV 3265 .R3 1836 Ramsey, , Journal of missionary tour m India ^ > n u JuJ2a.aa/v jvOvvvvJ^eA^// JOURNAL OF A MISSIONARY TOUR INDIA; PERFORMED BY THE REV. MESSRS READ AND RAMSEY, MISSSfONARIES OF THE AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS. • Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. BY / WILLIAM RAMSEY. PHILADELPHIA : J. WHETHAM, 22 S. FOURTH STREET. 1836. AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS, AND TO THE MISSIONARIES UNDER THEIR CARE, Em ffl2^orfe IS RESPECTFULLV INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR. INTRODUCTION. The first Protestant Missionaries designed for the Mahratta people, were sent out by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. They arrived at Bombay early in the year 1813, and im- mediately began to prepare for usefulness among the benighted Hindoos. The Island of Bombay was the only station they occupied, until the year 1831; when a new station was formed at Ahmednuggur, on the continent, and about a hundred and seventy-five miles north east of Bombay. Schools, in the mean- time, had been established on the Island of Salsette, and on the continent south of Bombay; the most of which are still in existence. Some of them have been given up, and others formed in their place. The number of schools and scholars is subject to con- tinual changes. The annual number of scholars may be about twelve hundred. Since the commencementof the Mahratta Mission, till the present time, the following named persons have been sent out from the American churches, to labour for the salvation of this people. Some of this number sleep in Jesus ; some have returned to Ame- rica in ill health ; and others are still in the field. A INTRODUCTION. American Missionaries at Bombay. Hall, Rev. Gordon. Arrived, 13th Feb. 1813. Died, 20th March 1826, at Dhoorlee-Dapoor, of cho- lera, while on a missionary tour. Aged 41. Nott, Rev. Samuel. Arrived, 13th Feb. 1813. Returned to America, in ill health, in 1816. Nott, Mrs R. Arrived, 13th Feb. 1813. Returned to America, in ill health, in 1816. Newell, Rev. Samuel. Arrived, 7th March 1814. Died, 30th May 1821, of cholera. Aged 37. Newell, Mrs Harriet. Died, 30th Nov. 1812, at the Isle of France. Aged 19. Bardwell, Rev. Horatio and wife, Mrs R. F. Bard- well. Arrived, 1st Nov. 1816. Left Bombay for America in ill health, 22d Jan. 1821. Lewis, Miss Margaret (Eng.), Married to Rev. a Hall, 1816. Embarked for America, 30ih July 1825. Nichols, Rev. John. Arrived, 25th Feb. 1818. Died, of a fever, 9th Dec. 1824. Nichols, Mrs E. Arrived, 25th Feb. 1818. Mar- ried to Rev. Mr Knight, of the Church Mission at Nellore, Jaffna, 19th Oct. 1826. Graves, Rev. Allen. Arrived, 25th Feb. 1818. Graves, Mrs Mary. do. do. Thurston, Miss P. Arrived, 25th Feb. 1818. Married to Rev. S. Newell, 26th March 1819, and to Mr Garret in 1822 ; and left Bombay for America in ill health, 29th Oct. 1831. Garret, Mr James (printer). Arrived, 9th May 1821. Died, 16th July 1831. Aged 34. INTRODUCTION. American Missionaries at Bombay. Frost, Rev. Edmund. Arrived, 28lh June 1824. Died, of consumplion, 13th Oct. 1825. Aged 34. Frost, Mrs C. E. Arrived, 28lh June 1824. Mar- ried to Rev. Mr Woodward, of Jaffna, 1826. Allen, Rev. D. O. Arrived, 27th Nov. 1828. Allen, Mrs/Myra W. Arrived, 27th Nov. 1828. Died, 5th Feb. 1831. Aged 30. Stone, Rev. Cyrus. Arrived, 27i,h Nov. 1828. Stone, Mrs Atossa F. Arrived, 27th Nov. 1828. Died, 7th Aug. 1833. Farrar, Miss Cynthia. Arrived, 27th Nov. 1828. Hervey, Rev. William. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Died, of cholera, at Ahmednuggur, 13th May 1832. Aged 34. Herve)^, Mrs Ehzabetii. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Died, 3d May 1831. Read, Rev. HoUis. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Left India for America, in ill health, 18th March 1835. Read, Mrs Caroline. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Left India for America, in ill health, 18lh March 1835. Ramsey, Rev. William. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Left India, in ill health, 6th July 1834. Ramsey, Mrs Mary. Arrived, 7th March 1831. Died, of cholera, 11th June 1834. Boggs, Rev. G. W. Arrived, 14th Sept. 1832. Boggs, Mrs I. E. do. do. Sampson, Mr William C. (printer). Arrived, Nov. 1833. INTRODUCTION. Missionary Societies and Stations. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. Sampson, Mrs Mary. Arrived, Nov. 1833. Munger, Rev. S. B. Arrived, 10th Sept. 1834. Hunger, Mrs. Hubbard, Mr G. W. Hubbard, Mrs. Abbott, Mr Amos. Abbott, Mrs. Graves, Miss Or pah. Kimball, Miss A. H. do. do. and married to Rev. C. Stone, 23d Oct. 1834. Ballantine, Rev. Henry. Sailed for Bombay, 16th May 1835. Ballantine, Mrs. ' do. do. Webster, Mr E. A. (printer). do. do. Webster, Mrs. do. do. Besides the American Missionaries, there are also others under the care of the London, Church, and Scottish Missionary Societies, who are labouring for the salvation of the Hindoos within the Bombay Presidency. The Scottish Missionaries have two stations : one at Bombay, and the other at Poonah. They have been compelled to relinquish their sta- tions at Hurnee and Bankote, for the want of labour- ers. Sickness, death and other causes, have left only two of these brethren in the field. Mr Wilson labours alone in Bombay, and Mr Mitchell in Poo- nah. The Lord has removed their companions from their labours and sufferings here, to their rest on high. MrNesbit has returned to Europe in ill health ; [NTRODUCTION. Missionary Societies and Stations. and Mr Siev^enson is now employed ay chaplain in the Scottish kirk in Bombay. The Church Missionaries, viz., Mr Dixon with Mr Farrar and lady, are stationed at Nassik, a large village, about seventy miles north east of Bombay. This place is the seat of Brahminical learning in the west of India. It is esteemed a holy place, and upon the return of the great Yatra, held al this place, thousands upon thousands of deluded pilgrims, from all parts of the country, resort to it. It was while returning from a festival held at Nassik, that the Rev. Gordon Hall lost his life. The Rev. Mr Mitchell, formerly in connexion with this mission, has returned to Europe with his lady, on medical certificate : it is not likely that he will ever return. The London Missionaries are stationed at Surat, about one hundred and fifty miles north of Bom- bay. The labourers here are the Rev. A. and W. Fyvie. They have, during their residence in the coun- try, been able to translate the whole of the Scriptures into the Goojurattee language ; two editions of which have been published, besides several tracts in the language. They have received into the communion of the church eight or ten converts. All of these stations have suffered more or less from the sickness and death of the missionaries con- nected with them. Many schools have been given up, and many bright and cheering hopes in reference to the success of the gospel among this heathen INTRODUCTION. Extent of the Field. people have been blasted. But these things are needful to try the faith and the patience of the mis- sionary, as well as of the churches at home. While the churches of Christ continue to send so few- labourers into the wide wastes, where so much is to be done, they cannot reasonably expect any great results. The Hindoo people in the Bombay Presi- dency have been estimated at twelve millions, and for this great population there are only sixteen ordained andlay missionaries, and fourteen ladies ; that is, thirty persons in all, as representatives of the European and American churches, in this extensive and interesting field. Can it be that the churches suppose that this feeble band is strong enough to carry on the great work of evangehzing tlie millions of benighted hea- thens for whose salvation they labour ] Would that their number was increased a hundred fold ; and even then the field would be great, and the labourers few. It is pleasing to know that the missionary spirit is increasing in America, notwithstanding the spirit of controversy which is at present distracting a portion of the churches. The hope is that all the stations will this year receive a reinforcement. More than one hundred are necessary ; but — where are they] Reader, why cannot you join the few who have already determined, if the Lord will, to go this year and carry the Gospel of Christ to the Gentiles'? The Wesleyan Missionary Society had two Mis- sionaries for a short time at Bombay, but they have INTRODUCTION. Modes of Missionary Labour. Itinerating important. long ago left the field in ill healtli. The society hos not sent out any others in their place. The Missionaries employ their time in the study of the languages of the people among whom they labour — in translating, or revising the translations of the Sacred Scriptures — in preparing tracts and school books — in superintending schools, and in preaching tlie gospel daily in the streets, and on the sabbaths in their respective chapels. The labours of the Mis- sionaries, so far as their personal exertions are con- cerned, are necessarily confined to tlieir several sta- tions during the greater part of the year, owing to the rains and the intense heat of the climate. The- months of December, January and February, how^- ever, are so cool, that Missionaries may travel with safety into the interior for the purpose of preaching the gospel and distributing the word of God ; and a considerable portion of that time is now occupied in itinerating. Whatever former Missionaries may have thought of this mode of missionary labour, the pre- sent labourers are decidedly in favour of it, and think it a highly important part of their evangelical opera- tions. The two plans must be united. For several years past the Missionaries at the dif- ferent stations have made pretty extensive tours into the interior of the country, and have, in this way, preached the gospel to many thousands who must otherwise have died without having heard of the only Saviour of lost men. In performing these tours, the Missionaries travel in a manner which is peculiar to [NTRODUCTION. Mode of Travelling. The Success of Missions in India. the country. There are no inns where they can stop and find every thing ready to make them com- fortable. On the contrary, if the Missionory would be comfortable on iiis journey, he must take his bed, table, chairs, cooking utensils, &c. with him. A tent is often necessary. Without this he will be compelled to sleep in an open chowdy, in a native house, or out of doors, which, at times, is far from pleasant. To carry these things, besides the books and tracts the Missionary may have with him, a number of servants are necessary. The heavier articles may be transported on bullocks, while the lighter burdens are borne on the heads or shoulders of men called coolies, or hamhoo-wallas. This mode of travelling is necessarily slow, and is frequently attended with a good deal of perplexity. The following Journal of a tour performed by Mr Read and myself, was written as we had time after the labours of the day, and will afford a specimen of this kind of missionary labour in India. In many instances, for the sake of reporting more correctly the different conveisations we had with the natives, one of us was employed in taking down notes, while the other was engaged in speaking to the people. This has enabled us to retain, in a good degree, not only the spirit of the conversations, but also the words used on the occasion. The success of the gospel throughout the Bombay Presidency has been considerable. All the Mission- aries are encouraged to continue their labours among INTRODUCTION. The amount of labour performed. The influence of pious Laymen. the people, and to spread the knowledge of Christ by means of the press, free schools, and the preach- ing of the gospel as widely as possible. We must not, however, judge of the success of the gospel among this people merely from the number of actual conversions, though this affords ground for encour- agement, but, from the whole aspect of things in the country. When the Missionaries came into the country twenty-two years ago, nearly every thing had to be done. Since that time, the whole of the Bible has been translated into the Goojuratiee lan- guage by the London Missionaries at Surat. The New Testament in the Mahratta language has pass- ed through two complete editions by the American Missionaries. A third edition, revised by the Bombay Bible Society, is now in the press. Parts of the Old Testament have also been published. About one hundred different tracts for the benefit of the people have been published in the Mahratta, Goojurattee, Hindoosthanee and Persian languages, including doctrinal, practical and controversial tracts, and ele- mentary works designed for schools. The number of these tracts is increasing yearly. The Missionaries do not labour alone in the great work of evangelizing these heathen people. Cap- tains Molesworth and Candy have rendered the cause of missions and of education essential service by the preparation of their Mahratta and English Dictiona- ry. They are now busily employed in preparing the second volume, containing the English and Mah- 10 INTRODUCTION. The aid from the English Government. ratta. The labours of these pious and laborious of- ficers are of very gieat benefit to the Missionar}^ and also to otb.eis in the country who are studying the Mahratta language. The Honourable East In- dia Compau}^, with their usual liberality, rendered these gentlemen all the aid ihey needed in preparing and in printing this work. There are other pious and intelligent officers and civihans who are aiding the cause of missions in India by their liberal con- tributions, christian example, and unremitted la- bours in preparing tracts and books for the benefit of the people. The aid which the Governinent gives to the cause, in encouraging missionary operations, and in the es- tablishment of schools, ought not to be over looked. Although they have, for prudential reasoiis, refused to have Christianity taught in the schools under their care which are designed for the natives alone ; still the effect of the whole system of education as there practised, is to break down Hindooism. The systems of natural and moral philosophy, and geography, &c., as taught by the Hindoos, are held sacred. They make a part of their sacred books, and it so happens that all tliese systems are /aZse. The earth, with the Hindoos, for example, is the centre of the system. It is a phine surface, and the sun revolves around it. Tiie Hindoo says it must be true, be- cause his Shaslru (Bible) says so. When he learns from an European teacher, in one of these govern- ment schools, that the earth is not the centre of the INTRODUCTION. 11 Science alone will destroy Hindooism. system, and that the echpses are not occasioned by the eflbrls of a Dytyu (daemon) to swallow the sun or moon, but that it is by the intervention of one of these bodies between the other and the sun that these natural phenomena are produced, he sees that his system is false, and of course his faith in his Bible is shaken,ifnot wholly destroyed. Christian ethics and christian jurisprudence are based upon principles of truth and justice drawn from, or in accordance with the word of God, and these are at variance with the Hindoo systems. The truth on any subject cannot but commend ilself to every mind v/heii fairly pre- sented to it. The enlightened mind of a Hindoo can no more resist the force of truth, than the enlighten- ed mind of a Christian. " Veritas magna est, et prevalebit." Let the truth, then, on every subject which comes before the Hindoo mind be taught, and Hindooism must inevitably fall. It cannot possibly stand. The truth must triumph. There is this much, however, to be said in refer- ence to giving the Hindoos true knowledge on na- tural subjects unconnected with religion, that it will, very probably, make the people infidels. After the light which they must receive, it is impossible that they should remain believers in their system of reli- gion, which is a system of falsehood and absurdity from the beginning to the end. But without the introduction of a better system they will inevitably run into infidelity, or something worse. Christianity 12 INTRODUCTION. The Gospel must triumph. Labourers needed. is the only thing- that can save the people. And while the christian should rejoice in every thing which tends to loosen the hold of the people on Hin- dooism, his efforts and prayers should he made to lead them into the truth as it is in Jesus. The Hindoo system, like all others which have their foundation in error, must fall before the blaze of gospel truth. The progress of this work must, of necessity, be slow at first, but the result is certain. A mighty fabric of superstition and folly is to be de- molished — the rubbish is to be removed — the good seed must be sown and nurtured with care — and if God grant His Spirit's aid, which He has promised, success must attend the efforts made to enlighten and evangelize the people. The field is a wide and important one, and de- mands many more labourers than it has ever yet received. The success which has already attended the labours of the various Missionaries — the encour- agement given at present by the Englisli Govern- ment to the prudent efforts of Christian Missionaries — the desire of the rich and respectable among the Hindoos to increase in knowledge and to be instruct- ed by foreigners — the growing disregard which the people exhibit towards their own religion, and the willingness with which they receive and peruse christian tracts, as well as the weighty obligations resting upon christians, arising out of the express commands of Christ to preach the gospel to them, and from their spiritual condition, call loudly upon INTRODUCTION. 13 Labourers needed. the Chrislian Church to arise and possess that land in tiie name of Christ, and to dehver it from the gall- ing yoke, of superstition and sin under which it has for centuries groaned. May the sons and daughters of India ere long become the freed sons and daugh- ters of the Lord Almighty — her idol temples with all the abominable rites of heathenism be abolished — the pure and holy worship of the one God be estab- lished in all the land, so tliat all may know their Creator from the least unto the greatest, and thus become a holy and a hnppy people. W. RAMSEY. Philadelphia, Jan. 1836. MISSIONARY JOURNAL IN INDIA. BOMBAY. SALSETTE. December 25th 1833. Having sent oflf our boxes of books, chairs, tables, &c., by coolies'^ to Tannali last evening, we left Bombayf this morning for the purpose of preaching the Gospel and distributing the * Coolies are Hindoos who carry burdens on their heads. Those who carry burdens on their shoulders by means of a bam- boo pole, are called bamboo-wallas. t Bombay, or as the natives call it Moom-ba-e, is an island on the western coast of Hindoosthan, in north lat. 18° 56'. It is about eight miles in length, and twenty in circumference. It came into the possession of the English by the marriage of Charles the Second with Catharine of Portugal. It contains a strong for- tress, a dockyard, and naval arsenal. The harbour is one of the best in the world. The island was formerly esteemed very un- healthy; but by draining and other methods, the healthiness of the place has been m;uch improved. It is said that forty different languages are spoken here. The whole population exceeds '200,000. The European population, including the soldiers sta- tioned on the island at Colaba, (which is separated from Bombay by a narrow channel that is dry at ebb tide) is about 2000. The native town is about a mile from the fort, a large portion of which is shaded by a cocoa-nut grove. The Esplanade, whicli lies between the fort and the native town, is covered, in part, during the dry season, with the tents of European gentlemen. 16 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Departure from Bombay. Salsette. Parsees. Roostumjee. Scriptures and tracts on the conlinent. We crossed over to the Island of Salsette* by a causeway, and came to the village of Veergaum, about fifteen miles from Bombay. When we airived, we found the public bungalow occupied by I wo gentlemen who had come for the purpose of hunting in the neigh- bourhood. We were, however, kindly accommodated for the time being, with a room in the house of Roostumjee, a wealthy Parsee. We had not the pleasure of seeing him lo-day, he being absent at* Bombay. On a former occasion, when tlie Rev. Mr Wilson and I called on him, we had considerable conversation with him. We found him quite con- versable. He has, like many of his Parsee brethren, but little faith in the religion of his people. He did not hesitate to say that he believed their sacred books were written by their Padres, (priests) and that God had nothing to do in their formation. In speaking on the subject of prayer, he said he could not per- ceive the necessity of a man's praying so frequently In the evenings, after the hours of business, hundreds of people, including Europeans, Parsees, Hindoos, Mussulmen, &c., may be seen walking or riding to and fro for the benefit of the cool and refreshing sea breeze. All is life and activity : the sight is truly pleasing. * The Island of Salsette is about fifteen miles square. It was formerly separated from the Island of Bombay by a channel half a mile in width, which was fordable at low tide. It was taken from the Mahrattas in the year 1773 by the English, who have con- nected the two islands by a causeway, which is of immense advantage to the inhabitants of both islands. IN INDIA. 17 Parsee mode of prayer. The Schoolmaster. I lirough the day, namely, morning and evening, and asking the blessing of God upon their meals, as (he practice of Fome is. "For my part," said he, " when I arise in the morning, I say, 'O God, just be as good to me lo-day as thou wast yesterday : that is enough !'" Roost umjee is a benevolent man, and has the good opinion of both Europeans and natives. Prayer conducted in the Parsee mode, is both te- dious and heartless ; and it is no wonder that such a man as Roost umjee should think it of no use. It consists in a lengthened form of prayer, interspersed with a variety of genuflections and salams to the water and the sun. Very often, while engaged at their prayers, the Parsees may be seen gazing about at the passing crowed, and not unfrequently stopping to speak w^ith their acquaintances. There is much reason to fear that they pray to be seen of men. They are, however, a respectable class of people. After breakfast, while I was engaged in the house, Mr Read went into the bazar and found a number of people, to whom he prenched (he gospel. After some time, while engaged in addressing the people who wereseated near him, and listening with attention, the village schoolmaster, a young Brahmun, came up to (he people, and in an indignant and authoritative tone addressing them, said, " What are you doing here? You cannot read. What do you know about books or religion 1 You are like bullocks. Up — begone !" Some of the people rose up, made no reply, and were about to depart, as the person who gave the com- 18 MISSIONARY JOURNAL. Conversation with the Natives. inand was a Brahmun, and his rebuke may liave been considered by iliem, as it is by many, as the re- buke of God.* Mr R. told them to slop, ys it was to ihem he had come to preach the gospel of Christ ; and if they could not read, and were ignorant, there was (he greater necessity for their hearing. Ad- dressing the Brahmun, he said, JMiss. Why do you order these people away 1 Brah. They are like bullocks : they cannot un- derstand any thing. Miss. Have they the word of God 1 Brah. No : of what use would it be to them 1 Miss. Can I hey read ? Brah. No. Miss. Who are (heir teachers and piiesls? Brah. We are [meaning the Brahmuns]. Miss. If you will not give them ihe word of God, nor teach them, nor permit them to have it, how shall they know what God requires of them, or how shall they obtain salvation] Brah. Chuch ! they cannot understand these things. The Gospel was (hen preached (o him, after he had been rebuked for his pride and priestcraft. But he soon became offended and went away, while the people seemed pleased, and willingly remained to hear. A few tracts were given to those who could * Nana Shastree, a Brahmun in the employ of the mission, once told me that his great toe is the Shoodroo's god, and that it should be worshipped by them as such. IN INDIA. 19 The Caves on Salsette. read; but ihe majority of ihe people present were so busily employed in buying and selling, that they did not feel disj)osed to attend to the subject brought to their notice. THE KENNERY CAVES. After dinner we turned aside to see the Kennery Caves, those extensive and far famed excavations. A Portuguese man was our guide. The path (o these caves leads through a mountainous jungle, and, from its present appearance, we should judge that it is seldom travelled. They are about three miles from the great road. They are all chiselled out of the mountain, and must have been done at immense expense and labour. They surpass the caves of Elephanta, both as to their numbers and grandeur. The principal cave is about seventy feet long ; its height from the floor to the top of the arch is about twenty feet. On each side are fourteen pillars of the same rock, surmounted by the figures of elephants. The entrance is by an enormous gate- way, and on either side of the passage are two hu- man figures of gigantic stature ; they are about twenty feet high : each foot is three feet in length. The rooms, cells, tanks of water, &c., all of which are cut out of the solid rock, are numerous, and would require a day instead of an hour or two to in- spect them. As they have been described by others, who had more time to examine them than we had, 20 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Hindoo Idea of their Origin. Caves neglected. Scripture fulfilled. we must refer the reader to these authors for a de- scription of them in full. The Hindoos have preserved no records ihat have come to ihe eye of Europeans concerning (he origin of these caves. The vague account given by ihe natives is, Pandowand Kdld, the Pandows* made them ; but when, or by whom they have been exca- vated must, in all probabiUty, remain for ever un- known. That they were made through religious zeal, and devoted to leligious purposes, there can be no doubt. While the lover of antiquities cannot but regret that these caves are left without any one to take care of them, or prevent the images from being still further mutilated and defaced by every ruthless hand that may assail thein, the Christian can see, in their present stale, and the indifference of natives and F.uropeans concerning keeping them in repair, either as objects of reverence or of curiosity, a strik- ing fulfilment of prophecy, and an unanswerable argument for the truth of (he sacred Scriptures. " In that day," says the prophet Isaiah, referring to the Gospel times, " a man shall cast away (or forsake) his idols to the moles and the bats." This text of Scripture is literally fulfilled as re- gards these idols and many others. As these caves have for ages past been deserted by the idola- trous worshippers, and as the stillness which reigns * These Pandows are the sons of Pundoo. They are five demi- gods, to whose power the excavating of these caves and other great works in the country are ascribed . Their names are Dhurm , Bheem, Urjoon, Nukool, and Suhudeve. [N INDIA. 21 Scripture Illustrated and Fulfilled. Popish Customs m India. is seldom distuibed by ihe sound of the human voice, the bats and (he owls find here a safe abode. The Hebrew word Idchepporpdroth rendered to the moles in ihe verse quoted above, occurs but once in the Bible. The root of the word signifies to dig, and may be applied to any other animal which partakes of the nature of the mole, viz., a fondness for dark places and for digging in the earth, as well as to the mole. That there are porcupines in abundance in these caves, is evident from their tracks and quills, which are to be seen in abundance in different places ; and as it is not decided with certainty what animal the word designates, may not the \vo\d porcupines be the proper rendering of the term used. At all events, it would agree with the fact that these caves, with their idols, are deserted to (he bats and to ihe porcupines. Part of the prophecies in reference to idols have been fulfilled, and we may rest assured that the interest- ing one in Zech. xiii. 2, viz., " I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered," will not fail of being in like manner accomplished. May the happy time soon come when holiness shall so universally prevail, that not only the idols themselves shall be destroyed, but even their very names shall be forgotten. POPERY IN INDIA. Our Portuguese guide was quite an interesting man, and fond of conversation. After he had con- ducted us back to the road, we paid him for his ser- 22 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Penance. Crosses worshipped. vices and dismissed him. During our conversation, he informed us that he regularly confessed his sins to his priest once a year, and that for the spiritual instruction which he might receive on the occasion, he paid half a rupee. The priest, said he, some- times punishes us by giving us a dozen lashes. The women are dealt with sometimes in the same man- ner. Thus, '^ Proving the doctrine orthodox, By apostolic blows and knocks." This is not the first time that we have heard of this mode of punishment as practised by some of these Roman Catholic priests towards their people. He also informed us, that he worships the cross and the images of saints which he keeps in his house, and that he does so at the command of his priest. Crosses may be seen in almost every village on this island and also in Bombay, where the Roman Ca- tholics are to be found, which have been set up as objects of worship. However much some may deny that the simple wood is worshipped, the fact is just the contrary, and the people acknowledge it. A few of those who can read (he Portuguese language have been furnished with the Scriptures, but by far the greatest portion of them understand only the Mah- ratta and Hindoosthanee, and are unable to read the Scriptures if they had them. Many of the priests still oppose the circulation of the Scriptures among their people, but what their reasons are for so doing, we pretend not to say. The people, as a general thing, IN INDIA. 23 Roman Catholics in India ignorant. Preaching in the streets. are exceedingly ignorant, and are but one remove from Hindooism. They need instruction, and with- out if, they must remain envelopped in their super- stition and gross ignorance. There is as great need for faithful Missionaries among these catholic con- verts from Hindooism, as there is for those who still hold to the absurdities and abominations of the Hin- doo system. TANNAH. We reached Tannah at 8 o'clock in the evening, and were accommodated with lodgings in the house known now among the natives by the name of the Billiard-room. A lad informed us that the Rev. Mr Nichols formerly occupied tlie same house. We could not but feel sad to think of the changes which have taken place here. The Missionary is dead ; tlie Mission schools have been discontinued, and the voice of prayer and praise is no more heard within these walls; but it shall not always be so, for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and all lands shall be vocal with his praise. December 2Qth. After breakfast we went out among the people, carrying with us a quantity of tracts. As we were walking through the bazar seek- ing a good place to sit down, a shopkeeper, observ- ing us, invited us to take a seat with him and a few others who were seated in the verandah of his house. We accepted his invitation, and immediately began 24 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Conversations with the Natives. Their cavils arid objections. to talk with them about the books we had, and the Christian religion, and to urge upon them the neces- sity of repentance towards God, and of faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ. A number of people soon collected together to hear us. The shopkeeper be- coming annoyed, told us to come at four o'clock, and then we would be able to have a greater assemblage of people to converse with. His object, we suspect- ed, w^as to get rid of us and the subject brought be- fore him, Felix-like, for the present. We therefore told him that we would talk to those then assembled, as there were enough for our purpose, and would, perhaps, call again in the evening. We felt better satisfied with our present number of hearers than with the promised multitudes in the evening. Two of the hearers, aged men, attempted the defence of Hindooism. We knew the difficulty of keeping or- der, and at the beginning requested them to speak alternately, and to be silent while we should speak. This seemed fair enough, and they agreed to it. One began. We listened attentively till he had finished, and then began to reply. But while urging upon them the necessity of worshipping God, who is a Spi- rit, in spirit and in truth, one and another interrupt- ed us with a string of questions and objections like the following: — *' Where is God? — what is God like? — How can we worship an immaterial and invisible being 1 — Every thing is God. — A stone becomes God, if a man hawe faith to believe so. — God gave to men different colours, different religions and different sa- IN INDIA. 25 Objections to the Gospel. cred books, and every man can be saved by follow- ing his own religion. God commands the Hindoos to worship idols. Christians [meaning the Roman Catholics, who are called Christian loke (people),] worship idols too." These, and many other objec- tions, were started in such quick succession, that we had no time to give an answer to any of them, nor did the objectors desire an answer. Their object, evi- dently, was not to have their difficulties or objections solved, but to prevent us from explaining one point full}?-, and perhaps too, to show their ingenuity in de- fending themselves. While thus engaged, a Brahmun spoke loud enough to silence the others, and fix the attention of all on himself. Addressing us, he says, Brahmun. Do you not take away life? ^Missionary. Yes : and so do you. Brah. Do you not believe that God is every where'? Aliss. Yes : certainly. Brah. Do you not eat meat and fish 1 JMiss. Yes, sometimes. Brah. Then you eat God, for he is every where and in every thing. You Sahibs* are very wicked, because you take away life. Miss. Do you not believe that God is every where, and in that piece of wood ? (pointing to a piece.) * The word Sahib corresponds to sir, mister, ^c, and is used ireely by all the natives to designate Europeans. C 26 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The mildness and cruelty of Hindoo laws. Brah. Yes. Miss. Then you irinst do violence to God, who dwells, as 3^011 say, in the wood, for you cut and saw it in pieces. Brah. No, no : that is a diflferent thing. Miss. But do not the Hindoos take away life 1 Brah. Chuch ! chuch ! Miss. Did they never kill any Sahibs? What do you say 1 The Brahmun remained silent, and presently got up and went off. In the mean time several voices responded, "Yes, yes;" thus acknowledging that they themselves are guilty of the crime they wished to fix on us, viz. of taking away life. Their own laws, however, justify the civil power for depriving men of life, while they condemn any one for taking away the life of an animal, especially a coic. Their laws are strangely mild towards the brute creation, and cruel, in many instances, towards human be- ings. But error is always inconsistent, and the Hin- doo in his practice strikingly exemplifies this. He professes to reverence the ox, and once a year does worship him, but during the remainder of the year he is driven or goaded on to his work in a most cruel and unfeeling manner. Being left without any one to interrupt us, we endeavoured to make known to them the plan of salvation through the Lord Jesus. We gave away but few tracts, as the people did not appear anxious to receive them. N INDIA. 27 Hindoo school. Roman Catholic chapel. After leciviiig this company of hearers, we visited a binail GoojuraKec school, and addressed the teacher and (he children on the suhject of the Christian lehgion. The teacher iiad not a book in the school.* With Ids permission, we supplied all the readers in ihe school with printed books in the Goojurattee lan- guage, a gift which they seemed to prize highly, and requested ihe teacher to call for more if he f^hould need them. He did not call for any. ROMAN CATHOLIC CHAPEL. POPERY. Leaving this school, we visited the Roman Catho- lic chapel. The priest who resides, as is their cus- * The mode of conducting schools in India is peculiar to the country. Part of the system has been brought to Europe by Dr Bell of the Madras army. It is known in America by the name of the Lancasterian system, it ought to be, Hindoo system. The scholars sit on the ground facing the centre of the room. The school is divided into four classes. The best scholar in each class is appointed monitor of the class. If the teacher is called out of school on any business, he gives his rod into the hand of one of the scholars, who acts as master for the time being. All the others obey him, and are as much afraid of offending him by their dis- obedience as their proper teacher. The children, who are learn- ing their letters, write on sand boards, making use of a small stick. In this way they not only learn the names of the letters, but also how to write at the same time. Arithmetic is studied in the same way. Some use boards painted black, and make use of a reed and chalk water in writing. This is more neat and clean- ly. In writing on paper, the teacher at first forms the letters, and the pupil draws his pen over them, and in this way learns to foim them correctly. I doubt not that many a boy has learned to wvxXc v.-ell in a Hindoo school without using half a quire of paper. 28 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Images in the chapel. Similarity of Hindoo and Popish usages. torn, in a house adjoining tiie chapel, seeing v\s en- ter it, very kindly came and offered to explain to us any thing we might wish to know concerning the chapel. He pointed out to us the images of several saints, which are arranged in tlieir proper places in the chapel. Our attention was directed to one saint and then to another, among whom we found Si Peter, St John the Baptist, St Anthony, &c. &c. St Anthony holds a conspicuous place in a niche in one side of the chapel. There is another image of this saint placed near the cross at the end of the chapel. Our attention was particularly attracted by a group of images near the door. We asked, " What is this?" The padre replied, "The representation of the manger in which our Saviour was born." Upon close examination we found representations of cows, horses y pigs, fowls, ^-c. arranged among some hay. In the midst of these lay wooden representa- tions of the infant Saviour and of his mother, while over head hung, by wires or threads, little images of wood to represent angels. Observing 6an^/e5 (rings) on the ancles of the babe, we asked what they were fori expressing at the same time our doubts whether the infant Saviour had any thing of the kind on his ancles, as he was born of a Jewish mother, and these made him look like a Hindoo child.* He replied, When books are found in the schools, they are manuscripts, and even these are exceedingly rare. * The Hindoos are exceedingly fond of ornaments and espe- cially of loading their children with them. A similar feeling is N INDIA. 29 Conversation with the Priest. willi a smile, thai they were put on only for the sake of ornament. A list of I he fasi-days, festivals and holy-days, which we presume are observed by the people, was hung- up to view in the church. These days amount to about fifty in the year, not including the sabbaths. After satisfying our curiosity in looking at the images and ornaments in the chapel, we were con- ducted by the priest into his house. At our request he shewed us a part of his library. The books we saw were in Latin. We observed among them the Vulgate, History of the Council of Trent, Decrees of the Popes, &c. We asked him if he had a copy of the Gieek Testament. He replied, *' Greek ! wliat is that !" We told him that the Scriptures were first written in Hebrew and Greek, and after- wards translated into t'le Latin. He seemed to have no acquaintance with the Hebrew or Greek, but (juotes the L^tin Sciiptures with great fluency and accuracy. He told us that he read the Latin in the chapel to the people, and explained the meaning of what he read to them in the Mahratta. It seems to us an additional and useless burden imposed on these exhibited by many mothers in a Christian land, in decorating their children with rings, and beads, and ribbons. 1 have now lying by me, an image of the god Ram, in the s?iape of a child, perfectly naked. Around the ancles and wrists, and above the elbows are rings (silver or glass are generally used). A silver chain is fastened round the loins and another around the neck, while rings are suspended from the ears. This is the usual mode of decorating children, taking care to shave the heads of the boys. 30 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Popery on the decline in India. Mohammedan converta. priests in making them read the Latin service to a people who know nothing about if, and then be compelled to explain it to them. Why not speak intelligibly at first'? To our inquiry, whether he attempted to make any converts from among the Heathen, he replied, ". No : if you speak to them on the subject of the Christian religion, the first thing they say is, ' True, Sahib,^ and the next thing is * What support will you give ws.' " He thinks that the conversion of the Hea- then is a hopeless case, and so does not attempt it, confining his labours to his owii people. Tiie Abbe Du Bois thought so too, and after a residence of about thirty years in the country, gave up the work in despair and returned to Europe, and although l^e had made between 200 and 300 converts, yet he did not believe that one of the number had embraced the doctrines of Popery from conviction of the truth of the system. We are not surprised at this state- ment; for the Heathen had sense enough to per- ceive the striking similarity between Popery as ex-- hibited in India and Hindooism, and that there could be but little inducement for them to change the worship of one set of idols for another, unless there was something of a pecuniary kind added. When converts are made from among the Hindoos to Moham- medanism, the followers of the Prophet, after circum- cising them, usually pay their debts, and thus release them from the oppression of their creditors, who, under such circumstances, seldom show any mercy. IN INDIA. 31 Conversations with the priest. Objections to marriage. This may liave induced tliem to say, that not only the Roman Catholic, but also the Protestant Mis- sionaries, pay their converts for renouncing Hindoo- ism. In turning over the leaves of one of the books the priest handed us, we observed some rules on the. subject oi" marriage, and reasons why the priests should not marry. We remarked to him that he seemed to live very comfortably in his house, but he wanted one thing to make him still more so, viz. a wife. At the mention of the word ivife, he laughed heartily, and said that would never do. J\'liss, But there certainly can be no good objec- tion to your being married as other ministers are. Priest. If I were married, I should have but lit- tle time for the work of the ministiy. tMiss. But Peter had a wife, and he found time for his work. Priest, Yes: that is true, but I should not be able to support a wife if I had one. J\^iss. Do you think it wrong for ministers to be manied ? Priest. Not for you ; but it is not our custom — we have promised not to get married — this custom is established in our church — the pope and the bishops are great men, and I am a poor man — what can I do? Miss. You consider it wrong for you to marry, merely because you have promised not to do so. Priest. Yes. 32 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A stone wall deified. Miss. But it cannot be wrong to break a bad promise ; the error consists in making il, not in break- ing it. He smiled, and ibe subject of our conversalion was changed. After some furllier conversalion on the present state of the Roman CathoHc church in India we parted, much gratified with our visit and with the priest, who showed much pohteness on tlie oc- casion. The priest was educated at Goa, and speaks the Latin, Portuguese, and Mahratta hinguages. He Hves in seeming comfort, and that too, upon an allowance which is shamefully small. In our walks to day we went into the fort. As we entered it, we were astonished to see an ugly idol placed in (he gateway. A company of lazy idol- worshippers were assembled together near il. In addiiion to the rude stone which they have set up for their god, and daubed with red paint, they have also deified, in their estimation, one corner of the stone wall, by daubing it in like manner with paint. Eight or ten poles, with rags on the tops of them, lo serve for flags, are set up near the idol to give it an ap- pearance of grandeur, or lo attract the attention of the passer-by. Several seapoys* aie stationed here to guard the entrance into the fort. We spoke to them about the impropriety and sin of worshipping such a vile thing. They said it was their god, and * This word is written she-pa-e, and means a native soldier. It is, however, usually spelled as above. IN INDIA. 33 Seapoj's encouraged in their idolatry. Silk making. that the Government did not forbid their placing it there. Because the Governnient have not forbidden the introduction of the idol, nor ordered its removal, the seapoys consider it as a tacit acknowledgement, (hat even in the estimation of a Christian people, (heir filthy stone is of importance. We are commanded not to worship idols ourselves, cuid also "not to be partakers of other men's sins in this matter." It is a subject not unworthy the con- sideration of a Christian people, how far, and in what way, they should aid in (lie destruction of idolatry in a land over which the Lord hath made them rulers. Sin is a reproach to any people, and it is (he reproach of the Christian church, that idolatry lias not been banished out of the world long ago. Oil our return to our lodgings, we sent the Portu- guese priest a copy of the New Testament in the Mahratta language which he was desirous to obtain. SILK FACTORY. December 2'lth. We visited this morning the silk factory, which belongs to a Portuguese in Tannah. The establisliment consists of several small houses in which the families of the Vv^orkmen dwell. A part of each house is occupied by their reels and looms. In some houses we found but one, and in others five looms. The process of making silk as conducted by these people, certainly appears very simple. They have the art of manufacturing silks and cloths wi(h (he aid of very Utile machinery, and as they can live 34 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Idolatry of ttie Papists. Worship of saints, and of images. upon little compared with Europeans, ihey can afford to sell silks at a cheap laie. We entered several of the houses, and among the first things which attracted our notice on entering, were the houseiiold gods of these Portuguese Chris- tians arranged in order in small cases prepared for them, and which face the door. These cases are about two feet high, and a foot and a half wide. They are made of plain wood and ornamented with gold 01' silver tinsel. In the middle of each case stands a cross with a wooden representation of the Saviour fastened to it. On either side were arranged various other images, such as the Virgin Mary, St Peter, and St Anthony. The people told us that every evening the}^ light the candles which stand before these images, and then, upon their knees, with their eyes fixed on these objects, perform their evening devotions. "But do you worship these," we asked. Soma replied that they did; and others said that they only worshipped those whom the images repre- sented. We replied, " In either case you do wrong, for the Lord commands you not to make unto your- selves any graven image, nor the likeness of any thing in heaven above, or on the earth beneath, and that you should not bow down to them nor serve them ; and further, that God is a Spirit and requires all persons to worship Him in Spirit and in truth, and not through the nieditmi of images or saints." The only excuse they had for so doing was, that all their people do so. But few of those with whom we conversed could read. IN INDIA. S5 Popery a hindrance to the conversion of India. It is much to be regretted that those, who are pound in the faith in some points of Christian doctrine, should mingle with the truth so much that is so glaringly false. It tends to bring the whole Chris- tian system into disrepute among the heathen, and only hinders their conversion to God. The Roman Catholics condemn the heathen for worshipping idols, and yet do not consider that b}^ adoring the cross and the images of saints, or saints themselves, (hey are guilty of doing the same things for which they condemn their idolatrous neighbours. The Hindoo can see no great diflference between his wor- shipping the image of Krishnoo, and his Portuguese neighbour's worshipping the image of Christ. They both invoke the aid of their departed saints. HEATHENISM OF POPERY. I have often been impressed with the slrikijig similarity between Hindooism and Popery, as exhi- bited in India. To my mind, it is very evident thnt Popery has borrowed largely from the Hindoos in building up her temple of superstition. Let the reader look at the following facts, and then judge for himself. The Hindoos acknowledge not only one, but many gods, which ought to be worshipped by them. In addition they hold that the Brahmuns are the repre- sentatives of God on the earth, and ought also to be worshipped. They do this by bowing down be- fore the Brahmun and kissing his great toe. They are supposed to have the keys of life and death, S6 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Heathenism of Popery. heaven and helL The Pope, in like manner, consi- ders himself ihe vicar of Christ : he too holds the keys of heaven and hell in his hands, and his toe has also been favoured with many a kiss. The Hindoos have four sacred books called Vedes, and eighteen commentators upon these, which are esteemed of equal importance with the Vedes. None but those of the priestly order are, by their laws, per- mitted to read these sacred books, under the penally of having their tongues cut out. Since the Brah- muns have lost their temporal power in the country, these laws are not regarded. The Romish priests in India also endeavour to keep the Scriptures from their people. Many of them do not obey their priests in this matter. I had a young man named Manoel ifi my employ, to whom I gave a Portuguese Bible, translated by a Portuguese priest. He took it with him to Goa, and while there, one of the priests took it from him, and forbade him to read it. The Hindoo priests endeavour to keep their people in ignorance of their Scriptures, and, to keep up their own superiority, have opposed the education of the people. The Romish priests have done the same. Notwithstanding the multitudes of priests which have been, and are in the westetn part of India, they have never yet given the Scriptures to the people in a language that they can understand. The Hindoos have a multitude of idols, which they daily worship. Some of them consider the idol as the representative of God, and others worship the thing itself, and go no farther. Besides temple dei- IN INDIA. 37 Heathenism of Popery. ties, they Imve household gods, which are daily wor- s])ipped by them. The Romanists in India have also images of saints in their chapels and in their houses, and to these they daily how down. In the streets crosses are set up ; and in the evenings, lamps are placed at the feet of them, after the Hindoo mode of placing lights before their idols. I have often seen the Romanists, as they pass these crosses, take off their hats and bow to them ; and others, who have more time to spend, approach them and pros- irate themselves before them. The Hindoos have many millions of Dewus, or in- ferior deities, corresponding to which, the Romanists have multitudes of angels. The Hindoos have their Gooroos to intercede for them w^'th the god whose favour they wish to pro- cure. The Romanists have their saints. In the chiu'ch at Tannah, I saw several of the images of saints, which the priest told me at times interceded for them.* * That the Romanists do worship images there cannot be the least doubt. Many of them do not pretend to deny it. Chris- tians and Hindoos daily witness the idolatry of their Portuguese neighbours. The church in India authorizes it, and so does the second council of Nice. One of the decisions is in these words : " The honour paid to the image passes to its prototype ; and he tcho adores the image, adores in it the person of him whom it represents." Con. Nic. 2d Act, vol. 7, p. 556. And again: "To those who diligently teach not the whole Christ-loving people to adore and salute the venerable and holy and pre- cious images of all the saints, let them be anathema." '< We adore," say the Nicene fatliers, " the unpolluted image of Qur D 38 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Heathenism of Popery. The Hindoos hold that a man may obtain poonyu (righteousness) by his own works, and that he may obtain in this way more than he needs for himself; the surplus he may sell to those who are more needy. There are many men in India who go about the country selling righteousness, as they say, to those who need it, for which they charge one or two ru- pees ! It is dear enough even at that price, for it is worth nothing. Whether there is any thing like this to be found in the practice of selling indulgences, the reader may judge from ihe following extract. "We have resolved," says Pope Leo, A.D. 1824. " by virtue of the authorily given tb us from heaven, fully to unlock the sacred treasure composed of the merits, sufferings and virtues of Christ our Lord, and of his virgin mother, and of all the saints, which the author of human salvation has entrusted to our dis- pensation. To you, therefore, venerable brethren, pa- triarchs, primates, archbishops and bishops, it belongs to explain with perspicuity the power of indulgences, what is their efficacy in the remission, not only of the canonical penance, but also of the temporal pun- ishment due to the Divine Justice for past §in." &c.* The Hindoos observe shrad, a ceremony in which they offer up prayers ; feed and fee Brahmuns, so as to procure righteousness for the souls of their de- ceased friends ; and, in this way, to procure for them Lord Jesus Christ, our true God ; and when we adore the image, we adore in it the person of him whom it represents." * Bull for the observance of the Jubilee. AD. 1825. [N INDIA. 39 Heathenism of Popery. a speedier admittance to final happiness. The Ro- manists fee the priests to say mass for the benefit of the souls cf their deceased relatives, and to get them out of purgatory tlie quicker. The Hindoos have many ways of obtaining right- eousness. One is by the performance of jup, which consists in the mere repetition of a prayer, or the name of one of their gods so many times. If it be a prayer, they keep count by dropping one of the beads of the rosary they liold in their hands : or if it be the name of one of their gods, it is repeated so many ghutkas. (A ghutka is twenty-four minutes.) By the performance of jup, barren women hope to obtain children ; and all of them, the forgiveness of sin. The Romanists hold to jup in like manner, as is evident from the -following extract. '*^To all them that before this image of pity shall devoutly say five Pater JVosfers,* and five Ave Marias^-f and a Crcf/o,| piteously beholding those arms of Christ's passion, are granted 32,755 years of pardon. And Sixtus the fourth, pope of Rome, hath made the fourth and fifth prayer, and hath doubled his aforesaid pardon." See the book of the Hours of. the Virgin, Paris ed. 1526 ; and Bishop Burnet's Hist, of the Reform., vol. 2, p. 138. Tup is another mode by which the Hindoos ex- pect to obtain righteousness. This consists in the various ways they have of doing penance, as, for * Pater Noster, " Our Father," &c. t Ave Maria, "Hail Mary," &c. t Credo, " I believe," «fcc. 40 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Heathenism of Popery. example, whipping themselves; standing on one fool ; remaining silent for years; lying upon the ground or on a bed of spikes ; maiming themselves by cutting off the toes or fingers; swinging, &c. The Roman- ists also have their various modes of penance, which are practised at the present day. The Hindoos have their oopas (fastings), of which they enumerate twelve kinds ; none of tliese exceeds fifteen days. In keeping some of these fasts, they are allowed to eat only one kind of food, and in all of them they abstain from meat. The twelfth mode of fasting continues one week : the following is the regimen prescribed. First day, milk ; second, milk- curds ; third, ghee, (clarified butter) ; fourth, cow's urine ; fifth, cowdung ; sixth, water; seventh, noth- ing. The Romanists also have their fasts, which are observed by all of those who pretend to any thing like strictness in their rehgion, and in these fasts they use no meat. The Hindoos have a great many festivals during the year in honour of their dewiis (saints). They number more than fifty such days. The Romanists have saints' days in abundance, as St Ambrose'b day, St Andrew's, St Ann's, St John's, &c. The Hindoos have their Teerth (holy places), to which they make Yatnis (pilgrimages), whereby they hope to obtain the pardon of sin ; as, for exam- ple, to the Ganges, Reiimshv^ur, J uggurnath, Wuzu- rabae, &c. Many of the pilgrims beg their way to these reputed holy places, and vainly imagine thai IN INDIA. 41 Heathenism of Popery. they obtain much righteousness by so doing. The Romanists have also theii* sacred places, and pil- grimages 10 I hem. Witness the number who go on a pilgrimage to "Our Lady of Loretto :" who make stations at Loch Derg, in the north, and at the Holy Wells, in the south of Ireland. The Hindoos have two kinds of holy water, which they use in sprinkling on their bodies, and for occa- sional drinking, viz. cow^s urine, and water in which a Brahmun has dipped his toe or washed his foot. The Homanists have their holy water, which the priests make by throwing a little salt in it, and by blessing it. The Hindoos divide all sins into two classes, in- ward and outward. Of the first there are seven degrees, and of the last twelve. The Romanists have also classified sins, making them venial and mortal. The Hindoos have their Dan Dhum, that is, the giving of presents to the Brahmuns. As each Brah- mun is looked upon as the vicar of Bruhm the crea- tor, whatever is given to the Brahmun is put down by Bruhm to the credit of the donor as so much righ- teousness obtained. And it is much in the same way that the Romanist expects his gifts (beneficia), to his holiness the pope, or his authorised agents, will be put down in his favour. The Hindoos have their Veiragees and Sunny- asecs, who give up the world, retire into the deserts or into a temple, and live upon the alms of the peo- 42 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Heathenism of Popery. pie. These are the monks and the hermits of the Romanists. The Hindoos have iheii' B huts , that is, Brahmuns who go either naked or meanly clad, and live by beg- ging from place to place. These correspond to the begging friars of the Romanists. The Hindoos have their Vashias, females who are dedicated to the service of some god. The marriage service is performed by a Brahmun, by which the girl is married to an idol. She can never be mar- ried to a man after this. They are usually dwoted to idols by their parents. Corresponding to this, we fiad JS*uns in the Romish church. A custom prevails among the Hindoos of carrying out their gods in solemn procession on the days es- pecially devoted to them. On these occasion& there is much display, and not a little shouting, accom- panied with music. The Romanists also carry out an image of the virgin Mary, preceded by priests bearing large wax candles, and little boys dressed up in a fantastic manner to represent angels. On matjy of these occasions, the display is increased by music and the firing of cannon. In almost all the temples of the Hindoos there are bells, which are rung by the wor&hipper as he enters the temple. A small one is kept by the priest, which he jingles to keep up the attention of the god, as they tell the worshippers. The Romanists, dur- ing the time of mass, have a small bell to tinkle, and in some of the churches, the church bell is rung. IN INDIA. 43 Hindoos fond of marvellous stories. The custom of using rosaries, aiid of carrying images about their persons, is common to both. These are some of the things in which there is a striking similarity. Others might be mentioned, as for example, the multiplication of rites and ceremo- nies not prescribed by their respective sacred books, but these are sufficient. The Hindoos most assur- edly have not borrowed from the Romanists any of the rites now found in use among them. The con- clusion must be, that Popery has borrowed from Heathenism. If not, how can we account for the striking similarity vvhicli we see does exist? The reader may judge. RETURN FROM THE FACTORY. On our way from the factory we saw a number of Hindoos assembled by the road side. Two of them were engaged in work while the others sat idly by. We asked. What are you doing here? Making a trough, said one. This tree is aRackshus (daemon) said another. Miss. How can that bet Hindoo. Once there was a wicked daemon, and he tormented the people in this world so much that God, to punish him,, turned him into a cocoa-nut tree, and from him all other cocoa-nut trees have sprung. Miss. Tliis story cannot be liue. The devil is still alive, and if you do not lea^ve off lying and youj idolatry, we fear he will get you ere long. 44 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A Mussulman youth. Certificates to servants. Hind. I am not afraid of that. After exhoiting them all to forsake their idolatry and worship the living God, we made onr salaam and came away. Such ridiculous stories do these poor creatures readily believe, or at least say ihey do, but withhold their assent to the declarations of the God of truth. But such is the effect of sin. The god of this world has, indeed, blinded their minds, so that now, as a people, the Hindoos are far more ready to believe a lie than the truth. Having returned to our lodgings, we found a young man, a Mussulman, who had come to seek employment. He exhibited two certificates of his good character. These, however, did not recom- mend him, though he supposed ihey did.* We asked * When a servant leaves the employ of a gentleman in India, it is customary for the employer to give him a written testimony of his faithfulness, &c. As these are written in English, the ser- vant seldom knows the real meaning of the character given. They may be good, or bad, or doubtful, and the bearer still keeps and shows them when anxious to be employed. The recom- mendations usually run thus: "The bearer, A. B., has been in my employ (so many months or years) and I have found him faith- ful, honest, &c. &c., and have dismissed him, having no more need of him, or at his request." (Signed C. D.) Some time ago, a gentleman dismissed a servant who had been in the habit of staying away very frequently from his work. His regular excuse was, that his father, mother, or some of his rela- tions were dead, and that he, according to their custom, had to attend the funeral. His employer gave him a written character in something like the following language : — " The bearer (A. B.) has been in my employ for a number of months, and is now dis- missed at his own request. While in my employ, his father has IN INDIA. 45 Servants, A mission school scholar. hini, "Are you a good boy?" He replied, "Yes, I never lie, nor steal, I never cheal rny master. Some boys go in the bazar and pay half a rupee for an arti- cle and then charge their masters one rupee for it. I never do so. I always tell the true price. I never smoke, nor drink brandy, nor keep any bad company. I am a very good boy. If master will tiy me, then he will know." This youth had not learned to obey the advice of Solomon, " Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth." His self praise was no recom- mendation to him. After he had left us, we made farther inquiry concerning him, and found out that his character was just the reverse of what he had told us. It is astonishing how devoid of truth this class of persons are. With them it would seem that truth, and every other moral trait, must bend or give way for the sake of money. The natives need the Gospel, if it were for no other purpose than to make them quit lying. A Hindoo youth called to-day for a book. He in- formed us that he was formerly a scholar in one of the Mission schools under the care of Mr Nichols, and used to meet with others, on the Sabbath, in the house we then occupied, to receive reUgious instruc- died/owr times; his mother, thrice; and all his relations, to the third or fourth generation, three or four times : so that now he will have no inducement to leave his service, and will, without doubt, prove a faithful and attentive servant." The poor fellow thought it a good character, and exhibited it accordingly. 46 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Objections of a Hindoo to Christianity. tion. He said he did not believe in the idols of his people, nor did he worship (hem ; that he had learn- ed from Mr Nichols that it was sinful to do so, and that he believed Jesus Christ to be the only Saviour of sinners. He remembered that there are ten com- mandments, but had nearly forgotten them, and wished to have another catechism or spelling book which contains the commandments. We gave him cheerfully such books as he wanted. This youth holds the memory of the deceased missionary in high estimation, but so far as we can judge, has not yet believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, to the saving of his soul. This evening a number of young Hindoo gentle- men called on us, with whom we had considerable conversation on the subject of the Christian religion. They brought forward a number of objections against Christianity, which showed that they had either read these objections in some infidel works, or had heard them from those who are no friends to Christianity. One of them objected to Christ as the Saviour, .in these words : — " Did not your Jesus Christ get him- self into difficulty, when He cried out, ' Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.' If he could not save himself, how can he save us]" We replied, that Christ could have saved himself from death, if he had wished it ; but he chose to die for sinners. If a man should be put into prison for a crime, and was sentenced to receive so many stripes every day, would he not get tham ] Now, if you should become IN INDIA. 47 Kindness of Christian friends. his buclul (substitute), would you not rexeive the sti'ipes he should have received 1 In hke jnanner, Christ is our budul. He suffered /or us, and all the anguish he felt, was in his body and soul. He is man, as well as God. His divinity did not suffer. He then replied, that he only wanted information on the subject, as he did not understand the Christian religion. He did not wish to advert to the fact, if he knew if, that tlie deatli of Christ was absolutely necessary for the salvation of sinners. Some of these young men have been educated in the government- pchool in Tannah, from which Christianity is, for prudential reasons, excluded. Many of these young men have discriminating minds. The education which they have received, has convinced them of the absurdity of Flindooism, and not Imving been instructed in Christianity, they are thrown into infidelity. We are fully convinced, that for the salvation of India, education and Christianity must go together. BHEWNDY. 28th. We left Tannah this morning for Bhewndy, wliich we reached at eight o'clock. Dr Edwards and his lady received us cordially under their hospitable roof, and have laid us under many obHgations for their attention and Christian kindness shown us. They are both members of the Church of England, and are endeavouring to extend the knowledge of 46 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Pakeers. Conversation with them. Christ among the natives around them. There is a regiment of senpoys stationed here. The European officers, and others in connection with the regiment, form a small, bul interesting society of Christian peo- ple ; many of whom, by their Christian example and efforts, do much to extend the knowledge of Christ amongthesebenightened heathen. Much moremight he done, by the few people of God stationed there than is done, in the way of instructing the natives, through the medium of tracts and schools, did they meet with proper encouragement. Very much, depends upon the commanding officer at an out station like this. If he be a man of G-od, and deeply interested in the spiritual welfare of the native soldiers and their fa- milies, much can be done; but, if the contrary, he has the power of preventing the accomplishment of much good. In the evening, accompanied by a pious young officer, Mr Reynolds, we went into the bnzar to con- verse with the natives. On our way we were met by three Fakeers,^ returning from the bazar. We made our salaam to them, which was returned, and asked, Mss. Who are you ? Fakeer. We are Fakeers, Sahib. Miss. What are you doing here 1 F, We are begging. Miss. You are not sick, nor blind, nor lame. You * A Fakeer is a Mussulman mendicant. IN INDIA. 49 Preaching in the bazar. are strong men ; and God has given you hands to work, why then do you beg 1 F. This is our work. God has commanded us to beg. Miss. Did God ever command you to beg ? F. No; not us : but he commanded our fathers to beg, and ordered that their children should do so too. Miss. How much money have you got to-day? F. See. [Holding his gourd-shell, which con- tained his money, towards us.] We looked in and found only four pice (about three cents) and a few dates. While engaged in, talking with them, a Mussul- man came up, and giving them another pice, went on. One of the Fakeers then observed, " See, Sahib, God has sent us another pice." Miss. But if you would work, you could get every day, more money than you now have, and you would not then be taking money from the poor, who cannot afford to give it. F. No, no; Sahib. We must not work. It would be a sin for us to leave this employment. This is our work, and we must follow it. They were then exhorted to forsake their sinful course, and work for an honest living, being assured that the course they were pursuing, would procure for them the displeasure of God here and hereafter, and not his approbation, as they vainly imagine. After leaving these Fakeers, we went into the E 50 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Hindoo religious beggars. bazar of the native town, which is some distance from the cantonments, and commenced our work of preaching the gospel to the people. We were soon interrupted in our work by a company of sturdy Hindoo beggars, who make a hving by going from place to place, fiddhng and dancing for the amuse- ment of the people. We exhorted them to forsake their vagabond life and turn to some sober and rational employment for a living. But they, like the Fakeers, plead divine authority for their work. " God," said they, ** commanded us to make a living by dancing for the amusement of the people, and we must obey." Whether these different classes of beggars really believe, or only pretend that they are obeying the will of God, by following their respective employ- ments, we presume not to say. Certain it is, how- ever, that the people admit their claims for a sup- port, and are not less prompt in giving their mites, than the others are diligent in asking. It is some- what strange, that such hordes of vagrants, consist- ing of men, women and children, should have been kept in countenance under the Native government, seeing that, so far from being a benefit to the commu- nity, they are only a nuisance, and a scourge to the poor. Considering these people now, as British sub- jects, and under a Christian government, we think it would be an act of kindness towards them, for the proper authorities to treat them as vagrants, and to compel them to engage in some honest employment IN INDIA. 51 English service. Christians in India united. for a livelihood. At present^ they are of no manner of use to the community, so far as we can see. Their increase, is only an increase of beggars, who help to consume the revenue of the country, with- out adding to it, and to increase the wretchedness and poverty of the poor, without alleviating, in the smallest degree, any of their sufferings. SABBATH AT BHEWNDY. Dr Edwards spread the information in the camp last evening, that two Missionaries had arrived, and that his house would be open for divine service this morning. At the hour appointed, a number of gentlemen and ladies assembled, among whom was tlie commandant of the station. Captain F. At the request of Mr Read, I preached to this interesting assemblage of people from John v. 40. " And ye will not come unto me, that ye might have life." The people here have not the benefit of the regular min- istrations of the gospel among them. They hope, however, to be supplied by one of the chaplains in Bombay.* There is, 1 believe, only one family at this station in connection with the Presbyterian church ; the others are connected with the Church of England. The christian people in India, though divided in sentiment, as to church order, yet seem more united in christian feeUng and effort, than * They have siuce been supplied. 52 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Seapoys ask for tracts. Bazar-preaching. christians generally are. The number of christians in India are few indeed, but their piety is of a high order. The increase of pious and faithful chaplains, and of pious oflScers, civilians, and others in India, is an immense blessing to the country. May their number be greatly increased, and their holy influ- ence be felt by the whole heathen population throughout the land. While on our way this evening to the bazar, we were stopped by some seapoys, who were exceeding- ly anxious to receive tracts. Many of them asked for English and Mahratta tracts, saying that they wished to learn the English language. We sup- plied those who could read the Mahratta with tracts at their own request. While conversing with them, they listened attentively, and seemed desirous to hear of Christ. Their orderly and respectful beha- viour pleased us much, and showed the good effect of the discipline under which they live. No one shewed any disposition to cavil, or make any dis- turbance. In the bazar, we did not find the people so willing to hear the truth as yesterday. There is generally some wrathful spirit or other to excite the minds of the people against us and the truth, on these occa- sions. How far such individuals may, at the time being, be under the special influence of the Devil, is hard to say; but that he does work in these " children of disobedience" to oppose the gospel, we doubt not. They may not be sensible of it, but this IN INDIA. 53 Girls from the mission school. does not render the fact less certain. The opposi- tion was of such a kind, that we were able to say but little, and were compelled to return. On our way returning, we were saluted by several little girls with, "Balaam Sahib; salaam Sahib." ^' Who are you f* we asked. Girls. We are school girls, and live here. Miss. Can you read] Girls. Yes, yes [responded several voices]. Miss. Where did you learn to read 1 Girls. In Bombay ; in Miss Farrar's school. Miss. Do you go to school now 1 Girls. No, Bahib; there is no school here. Miss. Is there no one to teach you now ! Girls. [Several of them raised their hands, and giving them the usual significant shake, replied] Nobody teaches us. Miss. We fear that you will forget to read, un- less you have a school. Girls. What can we dol At our request, they repeated the ten command- ments and portions of the Scriptures, in the hearing of a number of seapoys, who had assembled to hear the conversation. Their parents and others, heard these little Hindoo girls declare that, in their estimation, the idols of the heathen are vain, and that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour of sinners. We supplied them all with tracts, and invited them to call on us at Dr E.'s in the morning. They seemed truly glad to see us ; and their parents were no less 54 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Importance of schools. More schools for children needed. rejoiced, at even that small exhibition of their chil- dren's knowledge. Dec. oOth. Monday. This morning a number of the girls we saw yesterday, called on us. We as- sembled them and others in the verandah of Dr E.'s house, and after hearing them read a portion of one of the gospels, we exhorted them to love the Savi- our — supplied them with books, and dismissed them. We hope that the instructions which these little heathen children have received in one of our mission schools may not be wholly lost; though circum- stanced as they are now, there is great danger that they will forget much of what they haVe learned. If schools were established in all the regiments of native soldiers, in which the precepts of the gospel should be taught, it would do more than any thing else to make them faithful and obedient soldiers, and their w^ves and children orderly and peaceable. We hope that all rulers will, ere long, see that the way to make good soldiers and good subjects, is to bring them under the influence of the good and wholesome laws of the gospel of Christ. There is a school in this regiment for boys, but none for girls. Besides this one, there are no others in Bhewndy, where the youth can hear any thing about the christian religion. A large and flourishing school might be had in this place, if there were any to take the oversight of it. Some of the pious ladies at the station, are doing something for the benefit of the Hindoo girls, but they meet with opposition from IN INDIA. 55 Travelling. a source which cannot^weli be resisted. They hope that circumstances may so be changed, as to enable them to do something of importance for the cause. If all the christians scattered abroad throughout this extensive country, did but exert themselves for the salvation of the heathen as they might, India would soon be compelled to submit to the sceptre of right- eousness, and own Christ as her Redeemer. We visited some of the European famiUes to-day. They all lament the absence of the gospel privileges they once enjoyed. Some of them prize highly the few means of grace which they now enjoy. We were earnestly requested to visit the station again, and share their unfeigned hospitality. DEPARTURE FROM BHEWNDY. Tuesday, Dec. Slst. Our duty to the heathen, caused us to break away this morning from our kind friends, Dr E. and his lady, and others, with whom we have become acquainted. We can only say, the Lord reward them for all their kindness to us. We reached Lonar, a small village about seven miles distant, at 7 o'clock, where we remained during the heat of the day. The road to this place is rough and hilly, and lies through a con{mue(\ jungle, with only here and there a cleared spot. Gardees (native carts) cannot pass on this road. The mode of con- veying merchandise into the interior, is on the backs of bullocks or tattoos (native ponies). The people 56 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Houses. Hindoo worship and snperstition, usually travel on foot. We stopped at the house of the Patel, the head man of the village. The house, like most of the Hindoo houses in this part of the country, is constructed so as to accommodate the cows and calves and fowls, as well as the family. We occupied that part of the house which is appro- priated to the cows during the night, they being turned out in the day time. We had an opportunity this morning of seeing some of the domestic arrange- ments of this house, and the family at their devo- tions. The females, whose business it is to cook, having prepared their frugal meal, informed the men that it was ready. They immediately arose fiom the floor, which is of earth beaten haid and cleansed with a wash of cow-dung and walei', which also prevents it from cracking, and after washing them- selves, (for unless they wash oft they eat not) assembled in the corner of the house the farthest from us, for their morning worship. This consisted in the mere repetition of the word Ram, Ram, the name of one of their three hundred and thirty-three millions of gods, connected with beating, for about five minutes, a rude family drum. This being finished, they daubed a little moist powdered sandal- wood and red paint on their foreheads, breasts and arms, and then sat down to eat. On going near them, they all said, " Go away, go aw\^y — don*t come here — you will pollute our food.* It was * The Hindoos are exceedingly averse to having any one approach them while engaged in preparing or eating their food. IN INDIA. 57 The gods of a poor Hindoo family. Domestic arrangements. asked, "Why do you beat the tom-tom* before eat- ing?' They rephed, "This is our god." "But have you no other god than this 1" They then exhi- bited a httle box containing sandal-wood dust, and said, " These are all the gods we have." A small hoop with a piece of sheep skin stretched over it, and a box of sandal-wood dust, are all the gods of this poor fauiily ! Truly darkness covereth them. They sit in the region and shadow of death. Before leaving them we told them of the only true God, even our Saviour Jesus Christ, and urged them to throw away their idols and pray to the true God alone. After they had finished their breakfast, we asked, " How often do you eat every day." They said, ^^Twice; once at 11 o'clock and once at night; we are poor people and cannot afford to eat oftener than twice a day." There are some who cannot afford to eat more than once a day. They also told us that it was their regular practice to worship their god before eating. While the christian cannot but pity the ignorance of these benighted people, he is con- strained to admire in them the disposition to ac- While in Calcutta, one of the Missionaries, Mr Hodson, looked into the house of the Darwan, while he was in the act of prepar- ing his rice. He immediately picked up his vessel and threw out the whole of the rice, and raged furiously for a short time against Mr Hodson for the loss he had occasioned him. In Bombay, they are not so stiff in their notions of things as in Calcutta. A Mahratta is not quite so willing to part with his dinner as this Bengalee. * A native drum, made after different models. 58 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Reproof to Christians. Origin of worshipping the monkey. knowledge God (would that they knew the true God !) as the author of all their mercies. The con- duct of this heathen family reproves many a profess- ing christian in a christian land. How many are there who have been baptized into the name of the Tri-une God, and have sat down at the table of their Lord, who still habitually neglect to worship God in their families, or even to ask the blessing of God upon the food they daily receive from his hand. Will not the heathen in judgment rise up and condemn such professors for their glaring neglect of duty ? We had a few of the villagers assembled in the verandah of the PatePs house, to whom we made known the gospel of Christ. We distributed but few tracts among them, not being able to find many readers. There is no school in the village. There is one temple dedicated to the monkey god Hunoo- man.* The people appear to be poor. ^ The Hindoo account of Hunooman is this. Two or three millions of years ago, the world was desolated by a fierce giant named Rawun, who dwelt in Lunca (Ceylon). To rescue man from this scourge, Vishnoo, the preservative form of the Deity, and second person of the Hindoo triad, assumes the appearance of a human being, under the name of Rama, and proceeding to . Lunca, wages a bloody war with Rawun. Rama calls to his aid Mahadeo the third person of the Hindoo trinity, whose attribute is destruction. He becomes incarnate under the form of the monkey Hunooman, and from his abode in Himalaya, the land of snow, springs at one leap to Lunca. With the assistance of the monkey commander and his host of monkeys, Vishnoo at length subdues Rawun; but by some contrivance of the latter fire is set to Hunooman's tail. To extinguish this conflagration, which IN INDIA, 59 Temples and tanks neglected. TEETWALLA. After dinner we rode six miles through the jnngfs to the village of Teetwalla which is situated on the south bank of the river Baloo. The village is small, and has the appearance of decay, there being only two or three good houses in it. There is a small temple of Hunooman here which stands on the edge of a tank about eighty yards square. The temple and tank are both much neglected. We are not surprised that the temple should suffer for want of zeal among the people ; but that the tank, which contains the supply of water for the inhabitants for the year, should be left to fill up gradually and thus diminish the necessary quantity, is a matter of sur- prise. The wall is broken down and the cattle have threatened destruction to the world, he puts his tail to his mouth for the purpose of blowing out the fire. In doing this he burnt his face black. Full of shame, at one leap he reaches Bundur Poonch, one of the highest peaks of the Himalaya mountains, where the fire is put out in the snow ; but his face remains per- fectly black. Hunooman now presents a petition to Vishnoo, that having lost his beauty in his service he begs his honour may be preserved by rendering the visages of all his companions black in like manner. The request was instantly granted, and in ad- dition it was ordered that he should be worshipped for overcom- ing Rawun and delivering out of his hands Seeta, the wife of Ram, who had been stolen from him. This is one version of the origin of worshipping the monkey, but there are others which are somewhat different. In this part of the country the monkey is universally worshipped. 60 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Bats. Village school. Kindness of the Patel. Preaching. free access to it. Nearly the whole surface of the tank is covered with water-lilies. A number of wild ducks were sporting themselves in the water and seem not to be alarmed at the approach of any one. On two of the trees near the temple hundreds of large bats were hanging from the branches by their feet, and kept up a continual squeaking noise and quar- rel among themselves. To say the least of them, they form a noisy and quarrelsome society. Like the smaller species of bats they seek their food by night. They are at times rather anoying to the people. This village contains only one school, which, ac- cording to the teacher's account, numbers but fif- teen boys. The boys to-day were at a wedding when we called at the school. We supplied the teacher with tracts for himself and his scholars, and gave away a few more to those who could read. The mord, or written character is better understood by the people, than the balbad or printed letter. When we arrived in the village, we found the Pa- tel, who is an aged and respectable man, unwell, and occupying a small house not sufficient to ac- commodate us. He procured for us a lodging place in the verandah (porch) of a neighbouring house. By hanging up a curtain to hide us from the gaze of the passing people, and to defend us from the winds at night, we had a comfortable place. We collected a number of people before the door and in the verandah this evening, and preached to IN INDIA. 61 The sick man. Mistake our road. them the gospel of Jesus Christ, and supplied them with tracts. January \st, 1834. This morning we went through the village and conversed with all whom we found willing to hear us, and supplied the readers with tracts. On our return, we found a man lying before the door in the sun, waiting for us. He was poor, sick, and lame. He had heard that two Sahibs were in the village, and after learning where we stopped, called on us to solicit alms. We gave the poor man some money to relieve his temporal distress, and directed him to the Saviour of sinners for pardon and salva- tion. He seemed glad to receive the money, but was indifferent about the advice. Poor man ! he has none of the comforts of this life, and cares not for the only way of obtaining life and salvation in the world to come. After receiving the money, he crept into the shade and laid down on the ground to sleep. SHENDOOROON. In the evening we rode about twelve miles to the village of Shendooroon. The road was a mere path, exceedingly rough, crooked and hilly, and led through a thick jungle. As this village w^as farther off than we had anticipated, night came on us before we reached it. When about a mile from the village, we met some travellers at the forks of the road, and inquired the way to Shendooroon. One said, "Go ilds way ;" another said, "Go that way ;" but none of 62 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Lodge in the Patel's house. Vague directions. Hindoo character. them stopped to give us the particular information we needed. Being left to choose for ourselves, we took the wrong road. After wandering about for some time, we descried a fire at a distance, where some bullock drivers were encamped for the night. On making known our situation to them, they kind- ly directed us to the village. We came to the Pa- tel's house, who furnished us a place in his dwell- ing, by turning out the cows for our accommodation, though the calves were kept in. It is exceedingly annoying, while riding on a strange road, and night approaching, to be told by one that your stopping place is near at hand, though it may be miles off; or when you do ask, to get no answer, or such a vague one, that you would rather not have had it. We have often, when meeting a person, asked, " How far is it to such a village ]" naming it; the person, without stopping, has rephed " JV«2:eefc" (near). "Very well: but how many kos .?"* the answer may be, " Four or five." Or if the person does not wish to speak, he will hold up as many fingers as there are kos, and that is about all the information you can get. If the person met be a female, she seldom, if ever, will give any reply. Why they act so, we know not. Perhaps the men think we do know and need not ask, and the females are afraid or ashamed to speak to a person with a white face. * A kos varies from two to four miles. IN INDIA. 6S An uncomfortable night. Plan of the native houses. Some of our coolies were overtaken by the night, and were afraid, they said, to come on lest they should fall in with the tigers. In consequence of this, only a part of our bedding, &c. was brought to the village. The Patel furnished Mr Read with a native cot, about three feet by four, an uncomforta- ble thing to lie on, but it kept him from the ground. The calves in the night, finding themselves separat- ed from the rest of the herd, began to bawl. Their noise awoke the children, who, in turn, began to scream ; and this excited the talkative powers of the older members of the family : so that between the talking of the parents, the crying of the children, and the incessant bawling of the calves, not ten feet from us,, the night was rendered a sleepless one to us. The plan of the houses in this part of the country is somewhat different from that found in many places. They are generally square, and are made to cover a large space of ground. A small part of it is for the exclusive use of the family, the other part is used during the night for a cow stable, and being cleansed in the morning, affords a large sitting or lounging room for the family during the day. The floors are made of clay beaten solid. In the morn- ing, all the cow dung is carefully collected by some of the females of the family, and carried out of doors, where it is piled up for future use. In this work, the females use their hands, and we have seen them cany out the dung in the same large shallow cop- per dish, out of which, in two or three -hours after- 64 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Fuel of the poor in the East. The houses of the poor. wards, the family eat their breakfast, having scour- ed and washed the vessel clean. A portion of the dung is left on the floor, which being diluted with water, is rubbed by the hand all over it. When this dries, it prevents the surface of the earthen floor from cracking, and the clay from being brushed up during the process of sweeping. The rest of the dung is mixed with rice chaff or straw, and being formed into small cakes, is dried in the sun, and used for fuel. The heat produced by this kind of fuel, is said to be very powerful. It is more safe than wood, and not so easily put out. In the jungle there can be no difficulty in procuring wood, yet still the peo- ple seemed to prefer to it to wood. The preparing of fuel seems to be the peculiar work of the females of the family. The mere dabbling of the females in this filth has, we think, a powerful effect to debase their minds. In cases where the men and women are ahke ignorant of letters, the females appear more debased than the men, from the fact that they are kept at more grovelling works, above which their minds seldom rise. Both men and women must be educated, or they will for ever remain in their pres- ent low and degraded state. The houses are generally only one story high. The floor over head, if such it may be called, is sel- dom above five and a half feet high, and is formed by placing a number of loose poles across the beams or joists. The space above serves for the double pur- pose of a granary and a hen roost. The tramping IN INDIA. 65 Cradles of the Hindoos. Household furniture. Asnola. of Ihese bipeds over head during the day, not unfre- quently sends down a shower of dust, which is truly annoying to a stranger, but does not seem to be re- garded by the family. The doors of many of these- country houses are not more than five feet high, and some of them less. The people do not consider this an inconvenience, but are content to have them low, because it is their custom. The cradles or swings for the children which are to be met with here, are convenient and cheap things. They consist of mere baskets made of twigs, and suspended by ropes fiom the cross beams of the house, and can be kept in motion with very little trouble. The whole expense of a swing of this de- scription does not cost more than two or three annas.* The natives certainly have the art of making them- selves comfortable, according to their ideas of com- fort, at a very cheap rate. The whole of their household furniture need not cost a family ten dollars. Jan. 2d. This morning we had a number of the villagers assembled at the Patel's house, to whom we preached the Gospel of our Saviour, and gave tracts to as many as could read. After breakfast we left Shendooroon for the village of Oomra. During the heat of the day, we stopped at Asnola. This is a small village. The people are very poor, and scarcely any can read. We of course, distributed * A rupeee is equal to one shilling and ten pence, or two shillings sterling, according to the rate of exchange. An .Anna, is the one-sixteenth part of a rupee. 66 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The gods of the village. The gospel first preached at Oomra. but few tracts. They are also extremely ignorant, and have but little knowledge even of Hindooism. There is no school in the village, and none seem to feel the need of one. There is one small temple of Hunooman. The people of the village worship Hun- ooman, Bhuwanee, and Sheve ; but appear to have no correct idea of their characters, as mentioned by the Hindoos themselves. We know not that we ever saw any people so sunken in ignorance and stupidity, as the poor people of this village. THE VILLAGE OF OOMRA. We arrived at Oomra in the evening, and stopped at the Patel's house. A number of people were im- mediately assembled, to whom we preached. The subject of the Christian religion being new to them, they all listened with apparent interest. So far as we could learn, no Missionary has ever travelled over this ground: and now, for the first time, the people heard from our lips, the news of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. We endeavoured to explain the way of salvation to the people in as plain and intelligible a manner as we could. They appeared convinced, that what we told them was true, and showed no disposition to cavil or oppose. The Gospel evidently was strange news to, them ; but whether they were disposed to consider it good news, we cannot say. After we had finished speak- ing to them, we gave tracts to those who could read. IN INDIA. 67 The Patel shows a bad spirit. and one a-piece to all who could not, hoping that they might find some one who could, and would read them for (hem. The Patel took the tracts from the men, notwithslanding we had given him a suf- ficiency. We re-supplied the men, and these again were taken from them. This caused a serious dis- turbance between the Patel and the villagers, so that we were compelled to interfere. We took the tracts frorn the Patel, and distributing them among the people again, dismissed them. The whole of the difi[iculty arose out of the churlish disposition of the Patel. As he was dressed in a " little brief au- thority," he seemed determined to make his neigh- bours acknowledge it, and wished to lay them under obligations to him, by causing them to receive the tracts from his hands. He knew the tracts were designed for their spiritual good, but that must yield to the promotion of his little self. " Man, hard of heart to man! Of horrid things, Most horrid ! Pride brandishes the favours he confers, And contumeUous his humanity ; What then his vengeance ?" Jan. Sd, We had the people assembled again early this morning, and spoke to them the word of life, to which they listened attentively. In this village there is no school. There are four temples, dedicated to Hunooman, Bhuwanee, Sheve and Waga-deve.* In making inquiry concerning this * Wag, a tiger, and deve god ; hence the name Waga-deve. 68 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The tiger worshipped. Deplorable condition of the heathen. last named god, we learned that a wag (tiger) had some years ago eaten one of the people. To appease the wrath of (he tigers, and to prevent a like occur- rence, they, in their ignorance, set up an image in the likeness of a tiger, and to this, as well as to the image of Hunooman (the monkey god), the people daily present their ofTerings. It is the opinion of some pundits'^ whom we have consulted, that if the people of any village worship the tigers, they will not be injured by them. How strikingly ap- pUcable are the words of the apostle to the state of the heathen at the present day. The passage according to Professor Stuart's trans- lation reads thus. "They knew God indeed, but they honoured him not as the most high God, and were not thankful lo him as such ; but they became fools in their speculations, and their dull apprehen- sion was deluded. They became fools because they pretended to be wise ; and substituted in the place of the glory of the imperishable God, the image of the form of perishable man, of birds, of four-footed beasts, and of creeping things. Therefore God also on his part hath given them up through the lust of their sense to impurity ; — they have changed the true nature of God for a false one, and have honoured and worshipped the creature more than the Creator, to whom be glory for ever. Amen." Rom. i. 21-25. Before leaving Oomra this morning, we asked the Patel whether any of their Brahmun priests ever * Teachers of the Brahmun caste. IN INDIA. 69 Holy water of the Hindoos. Leave Oomra. called on them or not. He replied that one came about once a month, and told them concerning the lucky and unlucky days, about the stars, &c., and after receiving his pice departed. Some of the people on these occasions give one pice ; some an anna ; and others half a rupee. Every one according to his ability. " But do the Brahmuns," we asked, "ever tell you, how you can be saved from sin and belli" "No", said he, "they repeat the muntras (incanta- tions) and give us foot water (churunteerth) to drink, but we do not know what they say." This/ooi water corresponds to the holy water of the Romanists and is made in the following manner. A little vessel containing a quantity of water is brought to the priest who dips his great toe or washes his foot in if. It is now considered holy, and the individual for whom it is designed drinks a portion of it and fancies that by this means his sins may be forgiven. The person gives the officiating Brahmun money accor- ding to his ability. Each party being satisfied with what they have obtained, separate for the present. May these poor deluded heathen be delivered from the yoke of bondage under which they now groan, and have grace given them to apply to the blood of Christ which in truth cleanses from all sin. TOONGAU. KURDAH. Having addressed the people of Oomra, we set off for the village of Toongau. We stopped in this vil- lage long enough to speak to all we could find con- 70 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Influence of the Brahmuns and custom. cerning the Saviour of Sinners. They had never heard of Christ before to-day. Not one in this village could read. We saw here a government order nailed to one of the trees in the village upside down. The ignorance of the person to whose care this paper was intrusted was such that he did not know how to place the paper. Notwithstanding the poverty and ignorance of these villagers, they have their tem- ple erected to Hunooman, and do not fail to present to their favouVite idol their stated offerings. Leaving this village, we came to Kurdah where we spent the day. This village contains only twelve houses. To those who could read we gave tracts, and preached Christ and him crucified to all we could find. The gospel was new to these people and they listened attentively ; but after all our endeavours to inform them, some of them replied, " We must cleave to the religion of our fathers — we don't understand the rites of our religion, nor the reasons why we should follow it, except that it is our custom and the Brahmuns say we must follow it." Being weary with reading and speaking to the people, we laid ourselves down upon the earthen floor and slept, and awoke refreshed and prepared for the remaining la- bours of the day. DOOLKAM. At 3 o'clock we left Kurdah for Doolkam. On oui way we passed through a small village called Mazur. Near this village, by the road side, we saw IN INDIA. 71 Burning a dead body. The afflicted Husband. a few persons assembled for the purpose of burning the dead body of an aged woman. A pile of wood had been built up and the body laid naked in the midst of it before our arrival. The husband of the deceased, an old and gray-headed man, sat on the ground, at a short distance from the pile, with clasp- ed hands, and looked in silence at the wood which was soon to consume the body of the wife of his youth and of his old age, while the tears flowed abundantly down his furrowed cheeks. We ad- dressed him in particular concerning his affliction, and told him that he too must soon die — that though the body may be consumed by fire, according to their custom, still the soul must live and be happy or miserable for ever — and that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only Saviour of sinners and the only one who can give him comfort under all his sorrows. He listened attentively while we, sitting on our horses, spake to him the words of life, and then giving vent to a flood of tears called up his god with the vain repetition of Ram, Ram, Ram. As we rode away we could not but feel sad at the thought, that so many of our fel- low men are still enveloped in such gross darkness concerning all that lies beyond the grave. They believe not that these bodies shall be raised again by the power of God from corruption, and that being united to their spirits shall live far ever. The com- plete annihilation of the body, and the absorption of the soul into the essence of the Deity is with them the height of bliss! What a dark and dreary pros- 72 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Conversation with a Fakeer. pect for the immortal mind of man to contemplate! Life and immortality, blessed be Ood, aie brought to light by the gospel of the son of God. May the Holy Spirit (for only he can do it) enlighten their minds to see the beauty of holiness, and to feel their need of the same. We reached Doolkam in the evening. This village is situated at the foot of the Ghauts (mountains), and is inhabited principally by Mussulmen. There is but one Brahmun in the place, and he has the care of a little and diity temple dedicated to Hunooman. There are about twenty dwelling houses, besides two Musjids (Mussulman praying places) in the vil- lage. In sight of this village are three others which contain in all about fifty houses. There is no school in any of these villages. A Fakeer (a Mussulman mendicant), who had the occupancy of one of the Musjids, offered us a place in it for the night. We accepted his offer and took possession of it. We immediately entered into conversation with him and began by inquiring. Miss, Who are you ? Fakeer. Hum padre hein. I am a padre (minis- ter). M Whose padre are you 1 F. The Mussuliuen's padre. M. And what do you do for the people] F. When any Mussulman wishes to be married in this place, or if any one dies, then I must attend and perform the ceremonies. They cannot get mar- ried or be buried without me. IN INDIA. 73 Conversation continued. M, And do the people give you any thing for this? F. Yes : one rupee for burying a man, and one rupee for marrying a couple. JV[. I am sure that is cheap enough, only a rupee (half a dollar) for getting married : but have you nothing else to do 1 F. Yes : I read the Koran to the people. M. Do they understand it? F. Not much. I explain it to them. M. Do you understand it yourself? F. How could I explain it if I did not? *M. But why do you read the Koran? You ought to read the word of God and not the word of man. F. God has given to men four Kitaubs (sacred books) : viz. the Toureii (Law) to Moses ; Zuboor (the Psalms) to David ; the Anjeel (Gospels) to Esa (Jesus) ; and the Koran to Mah'mood.* He then spoke at some length in praise of the Koran and his Prophet, and concluded by saying that as God has given to different people different sacred books, they should follow the precepts of their re- spective books. To this we replied at some length, and endeavoured to convince him that God gave to man only one sacred book, and that all people were bound to follow its precepts. During this conversation, a number of people had assembled in the Musjid and before the door, and * The name is pronounced and spelled Mah'mood, not Mo- hammed. 74 MISSIONARY JOURNAL An important question. listened with apparent attention. Perceiving this, we turned to the Fakeer and asked him to tell the people present how sin could be pardoned, for all men are sinners and have need of pardon. Here, it was observed, is an old man (pointing to one) who has sinned against God for many years, and he knows it, and now in distress of mind, suppose he should come to you,* his priest and should say to you, "Baba!* I am an old man, and a great ^n- ner; I must soon die and be judged for all my sins, I feel I am not prepared to die, tell me how I can obtain the pardon of my sins and be admitted into heaven." What would you tell him? The poor old man felt the force of the question, and saw no doubt its applicability to his case for he was evidently agitated by it. The Fakeer, however, only gave his head the significant native toss to the one side, and replied, ** It is an important question," but made no at- tempt to answer it. After a short pause to afford the people time to think of it, we made known to them fully, the only way by which a man may obtain the pardon of his sins, through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. The people listened attentively. As some of our remarks bore heavily against Hin- dooism, a young Brahmun took up the defence of his faith. He^granted to us that God is holy, just and true, and that deception, theft and the like are sins, and that the true God cannot and never did commit sin. * A term of respect used among the natives, when addressing an aged and honourable person. IN INDIA. 75 Vileness of the Hindoo gods. We (hen asked him if his own books did not teach I hat Bruhma their creator committed incest with his daughter, and that it was considered such a grievous sin, that Sheve (the third person in the Hindoo triad) pronounced him accursed; cut off one of his heads, and forbade the Hindoos to worship him or to erect any temples to his honour] As to Vishnoo, did he not abuse a milk maid ; steal her milk from her, and then deny the facts when they were charged upon him] And did not Sheve dance among a host of female cowherds in perfect nudity to their no small confusion and his own disgrace ; and for this outrage upon all decency did not a Rishl, by his curse, despise him of all power to offend again in like manner; yea more, and did not Sheve, to take vengeance on the Rishi and upon the gods and men, torment them in such a way that they were glad to submit to a greater outrage upon all modesty by establishing the worship of the Lingumi Can such a vile being as either of these be God; and are such actions becoming a pure and holy Being] What do you think] The people said," Sahib speaks the truth ; they are no Gods," but the Brahmun remained silent. The people were shortly after dismissed. After tea we walked out to see the place and to converse with (he people we might happen to find. In our walks we came to the temple of Hunooman, were we found the young Brahmun with whom we had the above conversation. A number of people 76 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Conversation with a Brahmun. were near the temple, some of whom had come to present their offerings and to engage in the evening worship of their lifeless god, and others to spend the evening, as is usual, in conversation at the temple. We recognized the Brahmun, and coming up to the door of the temple, pointed to the stone image of Hunooman within, and asked. Missionary. What is that? Brahmun. It is God. JMiss. Is it not a stone with red paint on it? Brah. It seems so to you ; but God is in it. Miss. But it is certainly a stone. I perceive no- thing like God about it. You might as well wor- ship any stone with red paint on it as this. Brah. Where is your God ; I don't see him 1 Miss. The true God is invisible. He is a spirit and is every where present. Brah. Then he is in the idol and should be wor- shipped, but you can't see him. Miss. You should worship God who is a spirit, but not this stone — it has no life, it cannot hear when you speak to it. Suppose you should pray aloud to him and say, " Hear me, Hunooman, Hun- ooman!" Can he hear? He cannot hear, and all the people present know it. Brah. Is not your Jesus Christ dead? I hear so. Oh ! Jesus Christ! Jesus Christ ! can you hear 1 He can't hear. He don't answer me. Miss. True, Jesus Christ died in the place of sinners to save them from going to hell, but he rose [N INDIA. Conversation continued. again and is now in heaven and hears all our pray- ers, if we pray to him aright. He knows all we do and hears all we say. He is the only Saviour of sin- ners and he can and will save all who truly repent of their sins and forsake them. If you forsake your idolatry and believe in him, He will save you, but if not you must perish forever. He has made all men and he wishes all men to be happy. Brah. He did not make me. This is my Maker (pointing to the idol). Miss. What a lie ! you know that stone did not make you, for you or somebody else had to pay a man eight or ten rupees for it. God is your Maker, and he too made all things. Brah' No ; my father made me. Miss. And who made your father 1 Brah. His father made him. Miss. And who made his father? Brah. His ifather to be sure. Miss. And who made the first man, the father oX all meni Brah. How should I know 1 Miss. I will tell you. God made the first man and woman, and from them have sprung all the peo- ple in the world. God made them holy and at first they worshipped him aright. Afterwards they broke his commandment, and thus became sinful. Their posterity forsook the true worship of God and began to worship idols as the Hindoos now do. And you 78 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Hunooman. know that your books say, " if a man will fix his mind upon a vile object, his mind will become vile ;" and if he will worship a stone, his heart will become unfeeling as a stone r but if he worship God— ^gJTTW Brah. But our God is alive and can feel (referring to the image of Hunooman). Miss. If this be true he can take care of himself and we cannot hurt him. I then picked up a large IN INDIA. 79 Trialof an idol. Brahmun offended. stone, and stepping towards the door of the temple, said, Shall I try whether Hunooman can feel or noti Brah. The Brahmun ran and stood in the door, and said. Don't throw, Sahibj you'll break it. I persisted in the pretence of throwing the stone, and while the people laughed at the fears of the Brahmun, he raised both his hands and exclaimed, Nuko, nuko, Sahib; don't, don't, sir. Miss. (Addressing the people) what do you think of this god now T The Brahmun is afraid that I, a man, can break his god ! Hindoo. One of the company replied, It is only a stone — that is the reason he is afraid. Brah. Holding a tract in his hand which he had received at the Musjid andquite offended at what had happened, he asked " Shall I tear this book," at the same time pretending that he would tear it. Mis9. I replied. Certainly, if you choose ; we gave it to you and it is yours ; but we have plenty more and you cannot destroy the truth it contains. When he saw that it would not make me angry by tearing the tract, and that he had permission to do so, he refused to tear it. The people, who were witnesses to all thai was said, seemed to be pleased that one of their spiritual oppressorswas silenced for the time being, and while the gospel of Christ was made known to them and they were urged to forsake their idols, they listened attentively. Prom the conversations held with this Brahmua and the knowledge he had about the christian reli- 80 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Remarks. The Fakeer's enployment. gion, we were struck with the impcrfan^e of preach- ing in the streets and of distribming tracts to all we can find. He was at Bombay some time ago, and while there heard a missionary preach in the street, and although he refused at that time to receive any tracts, yet he remembered, from what he heard, a number of particulars of the christian faith. He remembered that Jesus had died for sinners, but whether he was wilfully ignorant of the fact that he rose again or not we cannot say. We hope that from what he has heard to day and the tracts he has now in his possession he will learn the true way to be saved. We returned to the Musjid to be annoyed by our noisy inmate, the Fakeer. This poor creature does nothing but lounge about all the day, eat and sleep and chew opium, and perhaps, as he says, attend the few funerals or marriages that may be in his district. A part of his employment consists in daubing pieces of paper with ink in such a way that when (Woof them are put together and held between you and the light the blots on the one supply the defects of the other — the shadow of both thus joined together gives the appearance of a horse or of some other animal. As he could read, we gave him a copy of the Psalms in Persian for himself, and another copy for a Mussulman in the village who wished to obtain one. The Mohammedans here seemed willing to hear qs preach. They are a poor, but in- dustrious people in this neighbourhood. IN INDIA. 81 Difficulty of procuring Bullocks. ASCENDING THE GHAUTS. Saturday^ January 4lh. This morning we had considerable difficuUy to procure coolies. The Pa- tel of the village was dispatched to the neighbouring villages to bring men for us. He returned after a short absence with six or seven men, and said he could get no more. We felt the difficulty of leaving our things behind us without having previously ob- tained bearers. They all told us if we would remain till the next morning we could procure men enough. We however were anxious to ascend the Ghauts so as to spend the Sabbath on the top of the mountain, and felt disposed, if possible, to go on. We were relieved from our difficulty at this time by the arri- val of a drove of bullocks from Bhewndy. As many of the bullocks were without burdens we offered to hire as many as we needed to carry our baggage to Rajoora and dismiss our bearers. The drivers refu- sed, saying that the owners of the bullocks had sent them unladen from Bhewndy and they must go so. They even refused to assist us in ascending the Ghauts, though we promised to give more than the regular pay. Finding all persuasion, and promises of pay utterly vain, we told the drivers that we must have three whether they were wilUng or not. Our servants, at our order, caught three of the unladen bullocks and with the help of the drivers had them laden with our baggage. When the drivers saw 82 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Ascending the Ghauts by a narrow pass. iheir oxen latlen with our boxes, and that some of onr servants vv^eie to be left with them, ihey agreed to carry them to the top of the Ghauts* for a stipulated sum. At ten o'clock we left Doolkam,t having sent our servants ahead. The great delay in leaving Doolkam was exceedingly unpleasant, as it compelled us to ascend the Ghauts in the heat of the day. Over the Ghauts at this place there is no made road. Bullocks and tattoos (native ponies) pass and repass with considerable difficulty. The roughness and the steepness of the way compelled us to walk all the way up the mountain. We were rejoiced, at times, to find the refreshing shade of a large tree under which to sit down and refresh our weary limbs, but as this was not always to be ob- tained when we felt disposed to stop, our umbrellas then served us in its stead. Near the top of the Ghauts we had to ascend by a flight of natural steps at an angle of about forty degrees. This passage in the mountain, it would seem, was formed by some mighty commotion in ages past. Perhaps when the fountains of the great deep were broken up, the rains which then fell and have fallen since have torn their way down the mountains and have formed this passage for the wild beasts, and the occasional travellers as they may pass and repass from the Dekun to the Konkun. When we reached the top * Ghauts, mountains. t The word is sometimes spelled, Deolgaon; perhaps more properly Daoolgau the temple village. IN INDIA. A pool of water on the top of the Ghauts. of the mountain, the first thing that nnet our eye was a temple erected to Hunooman. Tired and thirsty, we threw ourselves down under the shade of a tree, and despatched one of our servants in search of Waaler. He soon returned and informed us that he had found a pool of water. Thither we hastened, and with our horses slaked our thirst from the pool which has quenched the thirst of many a weary traveller before us. A drink of cool water and a piece of bread strengthened and refreshed us after our tiresome walk. Returning to the shade near the temple we sat down upon the ground and talked of the joys, while we rested ourselves from the fa- tigues of a missionary life. We have tasted of what the world calls luxuries, but they fall infinitely below the luxury of inhaling the cool and invigorating mountain air of the Dekhun after we had spent days and nights in the jungle and scorching heat of the Konkun, a luxury which we this day enjoyed. We regretted that we had not many of our breth- ren from the different seminaries in America to share our joys. The pleasure we experienced was heightened by the sublime scenery around us. As we turned our eyes to the East, the mountains and hills of the Dekhun were before us ; turning west in the direction we came, the mighty Ghauts, with their naked rocks, lik« "mountains on mountains piled," the deep ravines where naught save the foot of the wild beasts have ever trod, and where the rays of the sun have perhaps never penetrated, and the 84 MISSIONARY JOURNAL m Sublime scenery of the Ghauts. Kindness of the Patel's wife. more extended jungle, in alltheir barrenness, rough- ness and wilderness, lay before us, and all conspired to awaken feelings of admiration and adoration of Him who made them all. One would think, that the sublime and grand sights, which must meet the eye of a native in this part of India, would tend to raise his mind above the grovelling objects which en- gaged it ; but no, his God is a stone — his supreme enjoyment upon earth is fulness of bread and idleness, and the height of bliss which he hopes to obtain in the world to come is annihilation. He looks not through nature up to nature's God. GHAUTGAU. After being sufficiently rested, we set off for Ghautgau, a small village about a kos distant. We were directed to the Patel's* house, where we took up our lodgings till Monday. We arrived about two o'clock. Shortly after we had left our servants at the^ foot of the Ghauts, the bullock drivers very unceremoniously threw off our boxes, &c. and passed on, leaving our servants to find coolies where they could. This occasioned a great delay, so much so, that they did not arrive at Ghautgau till nearly five o'clock. Before this time, we felt quite sensibly the want of our dinners, and at our request the Patel's wife boiled for us a dish of rice, and prepared some * Patdf the chief officer of a village. IN INDIA. 85 A simple meal. Accommodations. A sabbatli on the Ghauta. bajaree* bread. The meal was not very palatable to our tastes, but it was " Hobson's choice" with us, we must take it or wait. A little satisfied us for the time, and spreading a kumlee-f upon the ground, we laid ourselves down and slept. Sleep to the labouring man is sweet ; and to us who were weary, we found it so, though it was in a stable and on the ground. After we awoke, the Patch's wife, who seemed to have the whole management of affairs in her hand, informed us that the part of the house we then occupied, was the part appropriated to the cows, and we could not remain in it, " For what will the cows do," said she, " if you stay there." We replied, " Let them sleep out of doors." " No, no : then the tigers will catch them." She assigned us another part of the house, and we resigned our place to the cows, being separated from them by a single bam- boo pole. The accommodations we had here, were not as good as the princes of this world enjoy ; but, they, doubtless, were as good as those once enjoyed by the Prince of life and the Lord of glory. It is enough for the disciple, that he be as his Lord. Sabbath, January 5th. This day we kept as a day of rest for the body as well as the soul. Oh ! how sweet is the sabbath, even in a heathen land! * Bajaree is a small grain used by the poorer class of peo- ple for bread, it is also given to cows, goats, &c. (Holcus spi- catus.) t Kumlee is a coarse garment of wool much used by the natives. H 86 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Poverty of the people. Their ignorance. The day we spent principally in studying the Pro- phecies. To the Christian Missionary, this is a most interesting subject of study. It not only tends to increase his own joy and faith in God, but cheers him amidst all the discouragements and trials he may meet in his missionary labours. Although the heathen rage and scoff at the doctrine of the cross, the word of prophecy assures him, that the king- doms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Anointed. Ghautgau is a small village, and contains only ten or twelve houses. The people are exceedingly poor. It is with difficulty they raise enough from the rocky land they possess, to support them. They surely need more clothing, (especially the females) both for the sake of warmth and decency. The air here is much colder, being the top of the Ghauts, than below, or at the distance of ten or twenty miles farther east, and yet, they are much worse clad than those who breathe a milder atmosphere. They, however, seemed perfectly contented, and so far as we could judge, happy in their poverty and igno- rance. During the day, the men of the village were in the fields gathering in their crops, while the females were at home engaged in different employ- ments, some in winnowing and some in grinding the bajaree for bread. We talked to all the people we could find collectively and individually, and endea- voured to make known to them the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. At first, we found it difficult to IN INDIA. 87 Preaching. Hyenas. Jackals. make them understand the subject, as their pronun- ciation differs very much from what we have been accustomed to hear; and as we made use of words of which they had no knowledge, the difficuUy was increased not a little. We hope we succeeded in making known to them, in language adapte and unholy caste before God. Is not this the truth ? Brah. Not so ; Brahmuiis are dev-a-cba aunsh, a part of God. jyiiss. If you take a piece of gold, and cut off a portion of it, will not both pieces be alike pure ? Bmh. Ye?. Jlliss. If then tlie Brahmuns are a part of God, will they not be pure and holy like God 1 But are not the Brahmuns sinful? Do they not deceive the people, and falsify, as well as others 1 Do they not * In the opinion of a Brahmun, a Muhar is the lowest of the low, in the scale of human degradation. The shadow of a Muhar falling on a Brahmun pollutes him. If a Muhar should enter any Hindoo temple, it would be polluted. If he should draw water from a well, or tank, the water would be polluted, and unfit for the use of other castes. If a Muhar listens to the reading of the Shastru, (Hindoo sacred book) he is by Hindoo law, condemned to the punishment of having hot lead and tin poured into his ears ; and if he should speak a sentence of this sacred book, he is, by the same law, condemned to have his tongue cut out. This is the spirit of Hindooism which many, in a Christian land assert, is sufficient to guide the Hindoo to heaven without the aid of the Christian's Bible and the Holy Spirit. Ah ! it is the spirit of the Evil One. And without the Gospel, the people must perish. Such are the severe laws, as recorded in the statutes of Munoo ; but now, they cannot be put in force, at least in those places where the Honourable East In- dia Company exercise their power. 244 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Conversation with a Priestess. dip their feet or toes in water, and give it to the peo- ple to drink, telling them it is holy water, and if they will only drink it, and give them money for it, their sins will all be forgiven 1 Several Hindoos smiled, and said, "It is true, Sahib. The Brahmuns, and all men are sinneis.*' (The Brahmun kept silent). Miss. As this is the fact, we ask you again, how can sin be pardoned? One Hindoo replies, " How should 1 know ?" another says, " Do you tell us." We then, having gained their attention, told them at length, of the only way of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. The readers were supplied with tracts. After conversing with the people who came to see us, we walked out into the village to see the place and to converse with others. We found but few to speak to. There is a large temple of Khun- do-ba in the village, which is not forsaken. We entered this temple and conversed with an aged man and woman. They officiated in the capacity of priest and priestess, but are ignorant, and cannot read. These are the persons to instruct the worshippers and counsel those who may come to them as to their duty, &c. Their ignorance of letters, forms no dif- ficulty in their way, for the command " the priests* lips should keep knowledge," finds no place in the Hindoo sacred book. Ignorance among them forms no barrier to the priesthood. Seeing a number of IN INDIA. 245 A Priestess married to an idol. idols of the same kind in the temple, we offered to purchase some of them; but they refused. In some instances we have bought idols from the people. If a good offer be made for an idol, the man's covetous feeling often prevails over his prejudices, and he will sell his gods for money , knowing that he can sup- ply their place at a much cheaper rate than what he has made us pay for those he has sold us. Pointing to some cushions lying on the floor, we asked, " What are these 1" The priestess replies, « God's bed." JMiss. And does your god go to sleep 1 Priestess. When I wash him, then I lay him down on the bed till I prepare the clothes, &c. for him. Miss. But can he not take care of himself] Priestess. Humph. (No other answer to this ques- tion). Miss. And who is this aged man ? Is he your husband 1 Priestess. No ; lam married to God, (meaning the idol). He is my husband. Miss. Have you any children? Priestess. No. Won't you give me some pice? Miss. I will purchase one of the idols, if you choose, but cannot give you any money. This she refused to do, and affer telling these aged idolaters, who are on the verge of the grave, for the first time, of the only way by which a sinner can be saved, we left them to go and bear the same news to others. 246 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Umbur. Hindoo zeal decreasing. This village contains about one hundred houses, dnd is, so far as we could learn, without a school. Thepeople complain of their poverty, and the hardness of the times, but all their temporal distresses do not lead them to see that the hand of God is upon them for their iniquities. Truly, " They are estranged from God through their idols, and the land is defiled under the inhabitants thereof, and therefore God scattereth abroad the inhabitants. He maketh it waste, and turn- eth it upside down.^^ UMBUR, Leaving Chinch-kur, we came to Um-bur, a large village, containing about two thousand houses, a distance of six miles, where we stopped in a large chovvdey, built by the native government for the ac- commodation of travellers. One part of it is reserv- ed as a praying place for the Mussulmen. To-day we have travelled about eighteen miles, and passed through a portion of the country which has once been thickly settled. Only a small por- tion of the land is now under cultivation, and all the towns, and houses, and temples, and tanks, and nmsjids show that the religious zeal of the people is broken, and the spirit of public benevolence is gone. The land looks like desolation personified. Unless something takes place ere long to arouse the people from their lethargic state, they will, in many places, inevitably be brought to starvation. Poverty and IN INDIA. 247 The state of the country and people. The temple of Khundoba. wretchedness abound. The Gospel of Jesus Christ can save them temporally and spiritually, and with* out it, they are undone. The proverb, ^Uhe wealth of India " has ceased to be true; it should now be, " the poverty of India.^^ It does appear that this, too, is one grand means which God is using to prepare this people to receive the Gospel. The oppressive measures of these petty princes, and the avaricious- ness of the Brahmuns, the priests of the people, have so weighed down the spirits of the cultivators, that many of them have given up in despair ; have left their lands, and have gone off to seek a scanty sup- port by other means. A large proportion of the revenue of the country is in this way cut off. The rich and the poor feel sensibly, that it is not with them now as formerly, and the pride and haughti- ness of all is brought down. But they must be brought lower still ; and God will do it. He will make their poverty aid in converting them to the faith of the Gospel. Wednesday^ 29th. We walked out early this morning to visit the temple of Khundoba, which stands on a high hill, to the southeast of the vil- lage. The ascent to the gateway of the temple is by a flight of steps of hewn stone. They are eleven paces wide, and about sixty feet in a perpendicular height. The ascent is easy. As there was no per- son present, and the door not being locked, we en- tered it, and saw the filthy stone which the deluded multitudes adore. There is nothing about the tern- ' 248 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Illustration of Ezekiel, vi. 13. Conversation with a Fakeer. pie differing from others that requires any special ^otice, except that a flight of steps leads up to the top of the temple, and affords those who wish to as- cend by them, a fine view of the country which lies beneath. From the roof of this temple, we passed to the top of the hill, in whose side this temple stands, and here we found an old and forsaken musjid, (a Mussulman praying place). It is still true as regards India, that on every high hill, and under every green tree, idols are set up. The high places of the land are, with few, if any exceptions, consecrated to idola- try. This fact illustrates Ezek. vi. 13. We returned for breakfast, much refreshed by our morning walk. On entering the chowdey, we found it filled with a variety of people. The farther end was occupied by a self-righteous Fa-keer,* (a Mus- sulman religious beggar). He had spread down his mat on the stone floor of the chowdey, on which he sat, and would not permit any one to come within a prescribed distance, while he, in his self-sufficiency, lectured the people (the Mussulmen) on the duties of their religion. We had considerable conversation with this man, but could make no impression on his mind in favour of Christianity. We gave him a few tracts in Hindoosthanee, which, we hope, will benefit him spiritually. About the centre of this building, are a few steps of stone raised up against the wall, which is hollowed out, so as to make a small recess. This part is sa- * Fa-keer, a beggar, dervise. IN INDIA. 249 Conversations in tlie chowdey continued. cred, and none, but Mussulmen, can approach it. Here, several had come, having left their shoes out- side*, and were repeating their prayers in Arabic, (which, it is highly probable, they did not under- stand), with their faces turned towards the wall, and in their opinion, towards Mecca. After breakfast, we walked into the town, with a few tracts in our hands, with the view, principall}^ of drawing the attention of the people to the fact that we had come to preach to them, and to distri- bute tracts, and to invite them to call on us. Find- ing a convenient seat on the steps of a shopkeeper's house, we sat down. Dajeba was between us, and, on this occasion, was chief speaker. We, in turn, were supported by a Brabmun and by a Mussulman. After explaining to them the nature of our errand, and giving theiTi a concise view of the Gospel scheme, Dajeba exhorted them to embrace the Sa- viour, and forsake all their vain and idolatrous ser- vices. We gave away all the tracts we brought with us, and invited the people to come to the chowdey, and we would converse more with them. We returned, followed by a great crowd of men and boys, to the chowdey, and here, from ten o'clock till three, we were almost constantly employed in con- versing with the people who gathered around us; * No Hindoo or Mussulman will come into a temple or mus- jid, without putting off their shoes. The place is, to them^ holy ground. On entering a house, they also put off their shoes : we put off our hats. 250 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Talookdar and his politeness. in answering their questions, and in placing the truths of the Gospel plainly before them. We ex- perienced, to-day, the great advantage of having- such a helper as Dajeba, and saw, more and more, the wisdom of the Saviour's plan in sending out his disciples, 'Hwo and two,^^ to preach the Gospel in the villages and cities of Judea. The people were ex- ceedingly attentive to all that was said. The doc- trine of salvation through Jesus Christ, was new to them. They had not heard of Him before, and were disposed to hear without cavilling or objecting. Immediately after our arrival in Umbur, the Ta- lookdar"^ sent his salaam to us, saying that the town was ours, and that if we stood in need of any thing, we should have it. We returned our salaam, accompanied with a copy of the New Testament, and of each of the tracts we had in our possession. While preparing to leave Umbur, another message came from the Talookdar^ calling us to him, as he desired to see us. About half a dozen sea-poys, armed, were sent to escort us to the Kutcheree, (au- dience-chamber) of the Talookdar, where he was seated, in the midst of the officers of Government, and waiting to receive us. We did not know the * A talook, or pergunnah, formerly comprised all the villa- ges and lands protected by a fort. A Talook-dar is the possessor of this district. "What particular powers this officer now has under the Nizam, I know not. His situation is much the same I should judge, as that of a governor in America, over one state, with this difference, that he is appointed by the prince to that station, and not chosen by the people. IN INDIA. 251 A visit to the Talookdar. A liind reception. object he had in sending for us, but supposed his feelings were friendly, and therefore hastened to wait on him. When we arrived, we found a body of sea-poys, armed, before the door; through these we passed into the Kutcheree, and here we found the Talookdar, seated amidst his various officers of Government, more than thirty in number, who were likewise seated around him, on mats, and all armed with swords and pistols. The Talookdar, was seated upon a platform, which was raised about a foot above the floor. A rich carpet was under him ; his back supported by a cushion covered with rich damask silk. His sword, mounted with silver, his watch, hookah, and silver snuff-box, lay on the mat beside him. When we came near him, he and all his officers arose and made their salaam, which we as politely returned. The Talookdar sat down on one end of his carpet, and offered us a seat by him. Here we sat in honourable state, with our legs doubled up under us, for nearly an hour, asking and answering questions. The Talookdar began by asking us whence we came, and where we were going. We told him ; and also told him our business, and then gave him a summary of the doctrines we taught the people. The command of Christ (Mark, xvi. 15) was then read, which explained to him the reason why we thus went about from place to place, and preached to the people. He then made particular inquiries as to our mode of sitting — what we eat — when, and 252 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Interview with the Talookdar and officers. how, and how much. To these inquiries, we an- swered, that we sat upon chairs, because sitting after their mode was rather painful to us ; that we eat from off a table, about three feet high ; that we used knives and forks ; that we eat three times a day ; that in the morning we took coffee and bread; at noon, rice, meat, &c., and at night tea. " And do you only take tea at night 1" We rephed, — "Yes; a Uttle bread also." Among the books sent him this morning, was a copy of the geography used by the boys in our schools ; this, with all the others, lay before him. We took the map, and pointed out to him the country of India, and then directed his eye to America, and told him that that is our country. Talook. I have heard of England, but I have never before heard of America. But are you not Englishmen 1 Miss. No ; we are Americans. Talook. But you speak their language. Miss. True ; but our country is different, and our laws are somewhat different. Talook. What is the difference 1 Miss. One thing is, we have no king. Talook. What! no king ! How can you live with- out a king? (When they heard this, there was an universal expression of astonishment, which set all the company to talking. As soon as this subsided, we replied.) Miss. The people of America meet in different IN INDIA. 253 Our mode of government astonishes them. places, once in four years, to choose a President, who remains in office for four years. If the majority of the people do not like him, they then put another man in his place. (At this, the Talookdar and his officers smiled). In this country, the people are the servants of the Raja, and they do as he commands them ; but in our country, it is different. Here the Raja can begin a war, and make the people fight for him ; but in our country, the President cannot begin a war unless the people are also willing. Here the Raja rides upon an elephant, and has a great many men with swords, and pistols, and spears, to defend him; but in our country, the officers of government do not carry swords, and the President rides out alone, like another man, and never has a crowd about him, to protect him. Here, a Raja may have eight or ten, or twenty lacks of rupees as his income every year ; but our President has only half a lack. The people make their own laws, and try to keep them ; but you know it is different here. (After some further remarks on our part, the company broke out in expressions of astonishment, and in a general conversation on the subject. After a short time, the Talookdar again began his catechising). Talook. Are you not paid by the government? (meaning the English Government.) Miss. The government protects us, but does not support us. The followers of Christ, in America, having heard of the ignorance of the most of the people in this country, and that they worshipped w 254 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Talookdar's politeness. idols, have sent us and others to tell them of a bet- ter way, and they support us. (This led him to ex- press his astonishment to his attendants). Talook. And do the Sahib loke hear your instruc- tions? (meaning the Europeans and other Chris- tians in the country). Miss. We preach in English to them, and to the Hindoos in Mahrattn. Talook. How long have you been in this country ? Miss. Three years. Talook. And did you never study the Mahralta language till you came into this country 1 Miss. Never. Talook. Perhaps you would have something to eat; if so, I will order it. Miss. We have dined ; but if it be your pleasure to give us any fruit, we will accept it at your hands. He ordered a seapoy to go and bring some sweet- meats and fruit. The seapoy soon returned, having a quantity of sweetmeats and pomegranates. He took them, and politely cut the fruit for us with a silver knife, and on presenting them to us, said, " These (the sweetmeats), were made in my house, and the pomegranates are from my garden, and are very fine." He then gave them to a senpoy to carry them to the chowdey for us, it being considered a breach of politeness to burden us with ihem. While the seapoy was gone after the fruit, we asked. Miss. Have you any schools in this village for IN INDIA. 255 Schools. The Talookdar's person and appearance. your daughters? We perceive you have some for your sons* Talook. We have none. Miss. There are schools for feiiiales in Calcutta and Bombay, and many are instructed in them to read the word of God and to write. One of the officers rephed, " True, but there were none till you (meaning Christian people) came into the country. It is not our custom to teach females." Mi^s. But if your wives and daughters could read and write, it would be well. When absent from them, you could inform them by letter how you are. They could read God's word, &c. &c. Ours can do so. Officer. It may be so. (That is, it might be well for them to learn to read). We then gave them a more particular account of our Missionary operations, which were wholly free of expense to the Hindoos, and expressed our hope that, ere long, knowledge would be universal among all the different castes, and that the Hindoo people would become virtuous and hol3^ They all seemed to be highly gratified with our statements, and on coming away, they all arose, and gave us repeated salaams, expressive of their kind feelings to us, which we, as cordially returned. The Talookdar is a young man only twenly-eight * There are in Umbur, five schools for boys ; three for Hin- doo youth, and two for Mussulman children. 256 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Lack of knowledge among the Hindoos. years of age, of a mild and expressive countenance, of a low stature, and exceedingly fat. His name is Govind Beesa, and he is of the Khutree caste^ i. e. of those who work in silk. His native place is near Hydrabad. We were rather surprised that he was so ignorant of European manners and customs. But it is probable, that he has never seen many Euro- peans, and as there are but few among them, who feel disposed to make any inquiry about the manners and customs of those of a different religion, whether in their own, or in a foreign country, we need not be surprised at the ignorance of the Talookdar in this instance. We have seen in Bombay, Brahmuns, who stood high among their own people for intelli- gence, and who, when questioned concerning the political and religious history and faith of their Mo- hammedan neighbours, would answer, "How should we know; we never made any inquiry; and it would not fill our bellies, (i. e. add any thing to our temporal enjoyment), if we did know all about them." To provide for the daily wants of the perishing body, seems to absorb the whole soul of the Hindoo. His immortal mind, is permitted to remain enveloped in all its ignorance, without making any proper efforts for its illumination. The great mass of the people, are content to do as their fathers did, and to wor- ship what their fathers worshipped, and whether that object be a god or a devil, it matters not, pro- vided it be the custom of the people to do so. Cm- IN INDIA. 257 Encouragement in our work. An interesting circumstance. torn with them, is a law, to which reason and con- science must suhmissively bow. The treatment we received to-day from this truly polite Talookdar, and his equally polite assembly of officers, was so perfectly the opposite of what w^e have lately experienced from the high and the low in authority, and the manner in which our message was received was so cordial and friendly, that it cheered our souls, and made ample amends for all the reproach and contumely which, for days past, we have had- heaped upon us. It gives us new strength, and courage, and zeal in our work, to find, at times, the ears of this heathen people open to hear the words of life, although they may not cor- dially embrace, at this time, the Gospel of the Son of God. A number of seapoys^ conducted us back to the chowdey, and seemed to take a pleasure in waiting on us and in sliowing their kind feelings towards us. On entering the chowdey, we found a number of persons waiting for books. We gave away all we had with us, (our servants and boxes of books hav- ing been sent on to the next village), except a few in our pockets, which we kept for those readers we might happen to meet on the road. One man, how- ever, was not to be put off. He caught hold of Mr Read's horse, and refused to let him go, till he should give him a book. He gave him one, which he re- ceived with joy, and then permitted us to proceed, * Native soldiers. 258 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Encouragement. Joyful hopes. giving- US at the same time, his hearty salaam alai- koom.*" (Peace be to you). We hope well for the work of this day. The fa- vour shown us by the Talookdar, brought us into fa- vour with all the people ; which must have a happy effect in making them prize the instructions, and the books they received from us. We hope that, from the kind manner in which he received us, our mes- sage, and our books, he may be induced to read the blessed word of God, which now, for the first time, has been brought within his reach. And who knows bur that God designs, that this day's interview with this man and his officers of slate, shall be but the precursor of glorious things (o him and to his people. The word of the kingdom of Christ, spread abroad among this people to-day, may be like the " leaven which a woman hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened," powerful though silent, and certain in its operations, in bringing down into the dust, the idols of the land, and in constraining the people, with one heart and with one soul, to accept of Jehovah as their Lord and their God. For this we labour and pray, and may all the dear people of God unite with us in praying, Lord let thy kingdom come, and let thy will be done on earth, (and speedily among this heathen people), as it is done in heaven. * Salaam alaikoom corresponds to the Hebrew mode of salu- tation, from which it is taken, and which is still in use among all the Jews in this country, viz. shalom al lauchem, Peace be to you. IN INDIA. 259 Parnair. Pimpuree. The blind boy. PARNAIR. The first village we came to after leaving Umbur, was Parnair. Here we stopped a short time, and conversed with a number of people in and about the temple, which stands on the road side. They listen- ed attentively to all that was said, and were anxi- ous to obtain books ; but as all our books had been sent on ahead, we were not able to comply with their request. We told them to come to Pimpulgau, where we hoped to stop for the night, and they could be supplied. They seemed disposed to do so. This village formerly contained seventy-five houses, but the number is now much reduced. PIMPUREE. Leaving Parnair, we came to Pimpuree. Outside of the wall, stands a temple of Hunooman, (the mon- key god). It is built of stone, and neatly chunamed (plastered), and adorned with a multitude of figures of men and godson the outside, which are made of chunam. A few persons were assembled here*, to whom the Gospel was preached. Seeing a poor blind boy sitting by the way side begging, and his aged father by him, I turned aside to speak whh them, while Mr Read continued to speak to those at the temple. The father told me, that his son had become blind while a child, from the small pox; 260 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A proper object of charity. that he himself was aged, and unable to work; and that his son could not afford him any help ; and the only resourse left him, was to beg. The most of the beggars in India, are sturdy beggars, who could work, but are too lazy to do it. They are not objects of charity, nor are they to be pitied, if they should at times feel the pinching of hunger. But they sel- dom suffer. The superstition of the Hindoos con- strains them to give, and to give liberally, to these religious beggars, fearing their curses, if they should withhold; but those who are in reality objects of charity, find have claims upon their sympathy,, are frequently passed by unheeded and unregarded. I talked to this afflicted father and son for a few mi- nutes, and endeavoured to direct them to Jesus, who can enlighten the darkened understanding, and will give spiritual sight to all who come to him. While I talked to them of Jesus, I saw the big tear start from the sightless eyes of this poor boy. The father also wept ; nor could I refrain to shed the tear of sympatliyfor them. Oh ! how wretched, and how dreary must be the lives of this benighted father and son. The Gospel, if embraced, would cheer them in their journey of life; but of this, they have never heard till to-day, and perhaps, may never hear again. I gave them some money, and then bidding them a sorrowful "Peace be with you," left them, not to meet again, till the heavens and earth shall be no more. I could not look upon the pitted face and sightless IN INDIA. 261 Hindoo superstition concerning the small pox. eyes of this Hindoo youth, without feeling distressed that the foohsh superstition and prejudice of tlie peo- ple should leave their children exposed to the rava- ges of this disease (the small pox), which eveiy year blinds many, deforms more, and sweeps multitudes of children from the earth. The small pox, is considered by the Hindoos, as a punishment inflicted on them by the goddess Door^a, the wife of Sheve. They say, she takes possession of the bodies of individuals, and after tormenting them internally, makes her external appearance in the shape of the small pox. To propitiate the favour of the offended goddess, flowers of a particular kind are collected, and being strung together, are hung in festoons around the bed on which the sick per- son is laid. Silence is also observed in the house for some time, and every thing is done by the friends of the afl^licted one, to satisfy the goddess, that their superstitious rites prescribe. The consequence is, thatmultitudes of the children and youth die. When this happens, the friends endeavour to reconcile themselves to their fate (for they are all fatalists), in this matter, by saying, that Doorga w^ould not accept their offerings. The Honourable Company have for years past employed physicians to vaccinate gratuitously all the native children and others that they can. They have succeeded in overcoming the prejudices of some of the natives in regard to vaccination, but gtill the prejudices of most of the people exist in all 262 ' MISSIONARY JOURNAL Prejudice against vaccination. -Pimpulgau. Jaulna. their foice against it. Dr J. A. Maxwell once told me, that in conversing with a wealthy and intelli- gent Hindoo on the subject of vaccination, he asked him, why he and many of the influential Hindoos opposed it, as he must beheve that it was beneficial in guarding the person vaccinated against all the ill effects of the small pox. The man very candidly replied, that he was opposed to it, because he feared there was something in the matter which would in some way, he knew not how, intioduce Christianity into the system, and tlius convert the Hindoos into Christians ! What an idea ! Whoever would have thought of converting sinners to the faith of the Gospel by inoculation, but a Hindoo ! How difficult to break down the prejudices of a superstitious and idolatrous people ! The work, however, is the Lord's, and He will do it. Leaving this village, we rode to Pimpul-gau, where we lodged for the night. Truly, we have here no abiding place. May we find rest, at last, in the presence of our Lord, Jaulna. Thursday, SOth. This morning we sent off our luggage and tracts to Jaulna, reserving only a few for distribution in this village. The forenoon of the day we spent in conversing with the natives and in writing, and in the afternoon rode to Jaulna. Not knowing which road our servants and coolies IN INDIA. 263 Lodging in a chowdey. had taken, we went first into Old Jaulna, but not finding them, we went to J^ew Jaulna, about one and a half miles distant, where the Honourable East In- dia Company have a subsidized force under the con- trol of the Madras Presidency. The government is in the hands of the Nizam of Hydrabad. Since the estabhshraent of a regiment of soldiers in this place, a large native village, containing many thou- sands of inhabitants, has sprung up.* Here we found our servants had pitched upon a dirty chowdey, in the Fulton Bazaar, for our lodgings. It was, how- ever, the best we could find. Having thrown a few handies'f full of water upon the floor, to keep down the dust, and having hung up a curtain along the open front of the chowdey, to hide us from the gaze of the passing crowds, but not to free us from the noise without, we threw ourselves down upon our couches, to obtain some rest after our wearisome ride through the sun, and to be invigorated for our work among the people. It being such an unusual thing for any man, with a white face, to put up in this filthy place, while so many Europeans lived so near at hand, and occupied such comfortable and spacious houses, that it drew the attention of the natives to us. They * The native population is between seventy -five and eighty thousand : the military force is about five thousand. t Handies are large copper vessels, in universal use in India, for carrying water. They answer the place of our buckets. They are made with a large and bulging body, and narrow neck, and expanded mouth, and without a handle. They are carried on the heads of the people. 264 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Visits from the natives. Note to the Commandant. inquired of our servants who we were, and why we had come hither. Not satisfied with the answers they received, many of them made the same in- quiries of us. We told them our object in coming to Jaulna, was to preach to the Hindoos the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to distribute tracts among them, and if they would retire now, and call in the morn- ing, we would converse more with them. We wer& then left alone. Having learned, on our arrival, that the only European known to either of us. Captain W., of this regiment, had, in consequence of ill health, left the station a few days ago, and knowing that it was our duty to report ourselves to the commanding offi- cer of the station, that we had arrived, and were within the cantonments, a note was sent to him by the hand of Dajeba, informing him of our arrival ; that we were ministers of the Gospel; and where we then were stopping. A seapoy accompanied Dajeba, who gave the Commandant our note. After perusing it, he inquired whether we wanted any thing to eat or drink. Da- jeba replied, that we had enough. Then, said he, "Salaam bolo,^^ (give them my salaam). We were as- tounded at the question, and while we could not but smile at it, we indulged the idea that there must be some mistake about the matter, and that the morn- ing would throw light on it. Friday, Slst. We enjoyed a tolerable night's rest, notwithstanding the noise and the heat of the place. IN INDIA. 265 A Jainist priest — his idea of killing. After breakfast, we went out among the natives, with the view of conversing with them. At first none of them felt disposed to attend to us. Finding a school room, we stopped before the door, and con- versed with the teacher, and gave away a (ew tracts. Shortly after, a crowd collected, and to these Dajeba spoke at length, and urged them to forsake idolatry, and turn to the Lord. After spending about two hours in the village, Mr Reed returned to the chowdey, followed by a crowd, to whom he preached and distributed tracts ; and I, accompanied by Da- jeba, turned aside to talk to others. In our walk, we came across an aged priest of the Jain sect. He was seated in a small room, attached to a shop kept by a Marwadee, and held iu his hand a portion of the Bha-ga-wut Gee~ta, which he had been reading. He had a piece of muslin tied over his mouth, to prevent the saliva from falling on the sa- cred book, while in the act of reading, but especially to prevent any insects, as flies, gnats, musquitoes, SfC, from being killed by entering into his mouth : for, according to Jainist doctrine, "to abstain from slaughter is the highest perfection ; and to kill any living creature is sin." After a few cursory remarks, he told me that the religion of the Jains is the only true religion in the world — that there is but one God — that this world is eternal, and so is matter of all kinds — that idols ought not to be worshipped — that it is by our own power we are born and die — that as there are many suns, many moons, and many stars, X 266 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Jainist priest — his sentiments. SO there are many v/ays by which to obtain happi- ness hereafter, but that the happiness which any one enjoys here, or may hereafter enjo}^, is, and must be, the purchase of his own good deeds. Having told me what he beheved, I then told him that he was in an error, and made known to him the plan of salvation. I appealed to the people, who had collected together to hear us, for the truth of what I had said, and was gratified to find that their consciences were constrained to acknowledge, that they could not be saved by their own works of right- eousness, notwithstanding their efforts to believe the contrary. After directing him, and others, to the Saviour of sinners, I gave them some tracts, and returned to the chowdey, where I found a crowd listening to Mr Read. The Jainas in India are not numerous. They assert that they have the true faith, and that the Brahmuns corrupted the tru-e faith, and invented the four Vedes, and eighteen Purans, and all their absurd stories ; the worship of the Lingum, the cow, and other sensible objects, all of which the Jainas reject. The Jainas opposed all these innovations, but with- out eflfect. * The Brahmuns finally introduced sacri- fices. This was so repugnant to the feelings of the Jainas, that, although before this time they were but one body, now they became completely separated. They formed a distinct body, composed of faithful Brahmuns, Kshutryus, or soldiers, Vaisya, or mer- chants, and Shoodroos, or cultivators. These IN INDIA. 267 The Jainas and their doctrines. classes compose the posterity of all the ancient Hindoos who united to oppose the innovations of the Brahmuns. The rupture between these two sects, on points of faith, ended in a war, in which the Jainas were con- quered. Their temples were broken down ; they were deprived of all civil and religious liberty, and were reduced to great distress. The spirit of en- mity which existed at the commencement of their separation, exists between them yet. The Brah- muns are now predominant, and the Jainas no where possess the land, or even confidential employments. The Jainas are now divided into two sects. They are called Basru and Swetambari. This latter sect is the largest. The distinguishing feature in their system is, that there is no Mokshu, or supreme bliss for mankind, other than the enjoyment of the sexes. They acknowledge one God, whom they call Pu- rum-atma, and who is possessed of infinite wisdom, knowledge, power, and happiness. They say, that he is wholly absorbed in the contemplations of his own perfections, and gives himself no concern about the affairs of men or this world, and that good and evil are alike indifferent to him. That matter is eternal and independent of God, they also believe. Those who do good in this w^orld, will be rewarded by a happy birth in another body, or be taken into heaven; the wicked shall be punished, by taking another shape in some vile body, or be turned into hell to expiate their crimes. The punishment in no 268 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Jainas and their doctrines. case is eternal, as it never exceeds thirty-three thou- sand years, and never less than one thousand. The souls of women, not being considered equal to those of the men, are never doomed to experience in J^uruk, (hell) the sufferings of thirty-three thou- sand years. No woman, as such, can ever be quali- fied to enter heaven. After millions of transmigrations from body to body, all men will be re-united to the Deity. In many particulars they agree with the Hindoos in their absurd notion of things ; but throughout their whole system, we find no acknowledgement of any thing hke the grand and distinguishing feature of the Christian system, viz. that men are wholly de- praved, and cannot be saved without the help of an Almighty and perfectly holy Saviour. Truly, the millions of India, are still sitting in gross darkness. How can they be saved without the Bible, and the knowledge of Jesus, as the only Saviour 1 It is im- possible; "for as many as have sinned without law shall also 'perish without law." We took a w^alk this evening, after the labours of the day, to see the cantonment. The whole is beau- tifully laid out. The neat dwelling houses, and gardens, hedged in with the cactus, and well made roads, form a striking contrast with the adjoining Hindoo dwellings, gardens and walks; and show clearly, that the barren and waste places in a hea- then land, may be made to assume a beautiful ap- pearance, under the direction of a Christian people. iN INDIA. 269 Temporal good of Ghristianity. Labours among the people. If Christianity should be of no other benefit to the heathen, than to teach them to Hve more comforta- bly, and in less filth than many of them do, it would be of immense advantage to them. This evening, after tea, Mr Hamilton called to see us. He said he had seen two strangers walking in the evening, and upon inquiry, learned that they were stopping in a chowdey, in the bazaar. His object was to find out who we were, and to invite us to ills dwelling. He expressed his regret that we were no better accommodated in Jaulna. At his request, we went to his house, and spent about two hours in Christian conversation with him and his in- teresting family, and after joining with them in their family worship, we returned to our chowdey. During the whole of this day, we have been busily employed in preaching to the people, and in distributing tracts, of which we have put in circula- tion several hundreds. Arabic, Cingalese, Marwadee and English tracts, were called for to-day, besides the Mahratta, Goozurattee and Hindoosthanee. We were not able to gratify the applicants, as all our tracts now are in the three languages last named. Many respectable natives called on us to-day, and spent considerable time with us in conversation. They told us, that two Missionaries had been here a year ago, and had distributed a number of tracts among the people, and that many of the tracts had been taken from the selipoys, by one of the European X* 270 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Tracts. Native Christians. Parsees in Jaulna. officers at the station. They could not tell why these tracts should have beentaken from them, as they thought they were good. Those who were deprived of their tracts last year, felt exceedingly desirous to obtain others, and assured us that they would take good care that these should not be taken from them. What the motives were, which should induce an European officer to take away Christian tracts from the heathen, over whom he had autho- rity, we do not presume to say. As to the fact that they were taken from them, there can be no doubt. A number of native Christians called on us to- day, and wished us to attend at their house of wor- ship, and baptize their children. Arrangements were made to meet them at 11 o'clock in the morn- ing. In our walks to-day, w^e found a number of Par- sees, the most of whom had come from Bombay to Jaulna, for the hope of gain. To these we gave a number of tracts, and portions of the Scriptures, in the Goozurattee language, which they seemed glad to get. While they remained in Bombay, where tracts can be had without any difficulty, they ne- glected to obtain any, and indeed did not care much about them; but here, removed to a great distance from their people, they seemed not only willing, but glad to obtain them. How wonderful are the ways of God, in bringing men into contact with the truth, in ways which they thought not of ! Saturday, February 1st. While at breakfast this IN INDIA. 271 Baptism of a child. Privations in a heathen land. morning, Mr Hamilton and Mr King called on us, and afterwards, Mr Gordon. We had considerable conversation with them, as to the state of the hea- then here, and their willingness to receive tracts. From what we could learn, there will be no opposi- tion to the distribution of tracts and the Scriptures among the people. This is encouraging, and we may hope that those already distributed will be preserved and read. From early in the morning till ten o'clock, we were busily emplo3^ed in conversing wilh the natives who came to the chowdey, and in distributing tracts among them. At 11 o'clock we went to Mr Hamilton's, where a few friends were assembled together to attend the baptism of his httle daughter, Helen Bishop. After the baptism, we had an interesting conversation with the family and those present. We were all pleased and profited by meeting together in this hea- then land, and parted in the exercise of kind and Christian feelings towards each, and with the hope of a joyful meeting hereafter. We were much pleased with the interest w^hich the children of this family seemed to take in us and in all we said. When we called last night, one of them, Mary Ann, had retired to rest ; this morning, when she awoke, her sister told her that two Mis- sionaries had been there, and would return this morning. . She was all impatience to see us, "For," said she, " I have never seen a minister or Mission- 272 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Privations in a heathen land.^. ary, and know not what they are like." The dear child was gratified in obtaining her wish, and we hope she will not forget the instructions given her. How differently situated are the children of Christian parents in a heathen land, from those at home. Here many of them seldom, if ever, see a minister of the Gospel, and receive from them only an occasional advice. Here they enjoy not the blessings of public ordinances, or of the Sabbath and infant schools, and have not that variety of useful books to instruct and improve their youthful minds, which the children in a Christian land have. In addition to these priva- tions, they have to witness the evil example of the heathen around them. To "train up a child in the way it should go," is, in a heathen land, a truly diffi- cult task ; but at home the work is easier, and the visits of Ministers and Missionaries, I should judge, cannot be so highly prized as here by a Christian family. Leaving Mr Hamilton's, we rode to the native Christian meeting house, where we found a number of people assembled and waiting for us. The num- ber of adults was nine, their children were also pre- sent, and all of them were dressed in clean and neat clothes. The building is about fourteen feet square, the roof is chuppured (thatched), the walls are white- washed, and mats are spread on the floor, which an- swer the purpose of seats. The whole appearance of the house, and the interesting collection of people, made us, for a season, almost lose sight of the fact IN INDIA. 273 A native Christian Church. that we were surrounded by a heathen people. Seven of those present were converts from Popery, and the other two from Hindooism. From their own account, it appears that the seven had em- braced the Protestant faith in Madras, and that they liad come to Jaulna in connexion with the European officers, and the native regiment sta- tioned here. They brought with them tlieir Eng- lish Bibles, and tracts in the native language. Not finding here any chaplain, or any of the means of grace they once enjoyed, they resolved not to for- sake tlie assembling of themselves together, and, if possible, to build for themselves a house for prayer. Their case becoming known to Captain Wahab, a pious European officer, he assisted them to put up the house they now occupy, and where they meet on the Sabbath and through the week to read the Scriptures; to sing the praises of Jehovah, and to unite in prayer to Him. Their meetings in this house were at first opposed by the Hindoos and a few Ro- man Catholics, who endeavoured, by interrupting their worship, and in other ways, to destroy this vine of the Lord's planting. Notwithstanding the opposition they met with, they still trusted in God, and pursued their humble course. The Lord heard their prayers in giving them peace, and in adding to their numbers. After conversing with them, and being fully satisfied as to the knowledge and piety of the adult candidates for baptism, they were bap- tised in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 274 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Baptism and marriage of converts, A good example. of the Holy Ghost. Afterwards, two children were baptised, and one couple united in the bonds of holy matrimony. During the whole of the services, the house was surrounded by natives (Hindoos and others), who had assembled to witness the services. We exhorted them all to faithfulness in duty; to put on the whole armour of God, and to let their light shine around them, so that others might see their good works, and be led to glory God. The heathen spectators were also addressed, and mged to forsake their idols, and turn to the service of the living God. They listened with attention, and we hope that what they have seen and heard to day may not be wholly lost upon them. Our hearts were cheered in meeting with this little flock of our Redeemer in a heathen land. They are surrounded by multitudes of those who know not God, nor regard his Sabbaths, and are shedding the gentle yet powerful influence of divine truth, and of a Christian example upon the minds of their ignorant, superstitious and idolatrous neigh- bours. We felt more than compensated, by this day's spiritual feast, for all the contumely and toil we have endured in this heathen land. Truly our God is good in thus cheering our hearts, and in tlie midst of trials to make us sing aloud for jo}'. If (here be a congregation urxler heaven which angels look upon with peculiar delight, and to which they re- joice to minister, it must be, we think, such a con- gregation as this. The whole population is sunk in IN INDIA. 275 Light in the midst of darkness. Natives baptised and married. deep degradation — God's name is dishonoured by them, and the only advocates for truth and holiness, and the purity of rehgion fiom among them, are nine humble individuals, who, though in the capacity of servants to others; without any earthly spiritual guide; opposed and scoffed atby their heatlien neigh- bours, and possessed of only a scanty subsistence, still stand up, firm and unshaken, for the gloiy of God, and for the honour of his name. Our presence encouraged their hearts, and our counsel and prayers gave them new zeal and new joy in the service of our common Lord and Saviour. We gave them all the right hand of fellowsliip, and, after exhorting them again to be strong in the Lord, and praying that God might speedily send them others to break to them the bread of life, we parted, to meet, it may be, the next time, in the kingdom of our Father above. The names of the persons baptised and united by us in marriage to-day, are as follows : Paul and Sugreyr, adults ; Moses, adopted child of Sugreyr ; Samuel, infant of Nigum Dickreuse and Frances Dickreuse, baptised by Rev. H. Read. Helen Bishop, daughter of Mr Johnson Hamilton and Mrs Margaret Hamilton, baptised : Sugreyr and Charlotte Bell, united in marriage by Rev. W. Ram- sey. Returning from this interesting congregation to our chowdey, w-e found a number of Hindoos wait- 276 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Notes from Captain Alexander. ing for us, to these we also preached the Gospel, and gave tracts to all who coujd read them. We found lying on our table the following polite note from Capt. Alexander, addressed to Mr Read. " My dear sir, — I have this moment heard of your arrival in Jaulna, and beg leave to tender my ser- vices, if I can in any way be useful, or add to your comfort. I have no spare rooms in my house, but shall be delighted if you will allow me to pitch my tents in my compound, (enclosure) for you and your companion during your intended sojourn at this sta- tion. "Yours, very obediently, " R. Alexander." To this note we replied, that as we intended going to Budnapoor after dinner, we should not be able to accept of his kind invitation, and begged him to ac- cept our thanks for his kind offer. To this the following note from Captains White and Alexander was received. " My dear sirs, — We have much to regret Imving missed the opportunity of receiving and hearing the ministers of our Lord. We beg you to accept of our best Christian wishes that you may go on your way rejoicing, and find many ears opened to hear, and many hearts softened to receive the glad tidings of the gospel. " I have desired some natives connected with me to call upon you, and trust that they may be profited. Should you pass through here again, I hope you will remember that you are expected and desired at our IN INDIA. 277 Departure from Jaulna. Interview with captains A, and W. house. If you would take up your abode with us here, or if we meet elsewhere, it will be a favour and delight. "Yours, very faithfully, "R. Alexander." Through the kindness of Mr Hamilton, we procured bullocks to take our books and luggage to Arurlga- bad, and also a few coolies. These were all sent on, while we remained behind till the cool of the eve- ning, to converse more with the natives. Several of the more wealthy and respectable natives called on us this afternoon and seemed to take a pleasure in conversing with us on the subject of Christianity. While engaged in conversing with them, our friends, captains Alexander and White called. Their pre- sence, we think, gave weight to what we had pre- viously said to the people, and the countenance which these gentlemen showed us and our la- bours, though the visit was short, will have a happy effect upon the people around. The same feeling which dictated the question " Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him," (John vii, 48,) is most strikingly exemplified among the Hindoos. If a Missionary be countenanced in his labours by the Christian people in the country, who have influence among the natives, he will have much more influence among them, and his words will be much more attended to. When we tell the Hindoos that many of their people have embraced Chris- tianity, they are apt to inquire whether any of the y 278 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The opinion of a wealthy Brahmun. Brahmuns have believed or not; and if so, what was the standing of these Brahmuns, in their own caste, before they believed. When we can tell them that their standing was good among their own people, the effect upon their minds is powerful, and forces Ihem to grant that the Christian religion may be as good, yea, and better for them than their own. A Brahmun once told me, that if such and such wealthy natives, naming them, should embrace the Christian religion, he would then believe that there was truth in it ; but while the converts were gene- rally from among the poor, or those in only mode- rate woildly circumstances, he could not think that they had embraced the faith of the Gospel from any other than motives of gain, and that Christianity itself was not designed for the Hindoo people. This feeling, no doubt, prevails among them to a great extent ; and if a few of the wealthy ones from among the Hindoos should embrace the Gospel, there is every reason to believe that multitudes would follow their example, and seek to crowd into the Christian church. But to the poor the Gospel is preached, and from among them, with very few exceptions, con- verts have been made. God is in this way using " the weak things of the world to confound the mighty, and things that are not to bring to naught things that are." Christian people, however, may do much to advance the cause of Christ in India by countenancing the Missionaries in their labours, as IN INDIA. 279 The deification of a murderer. well as by their own example, and direct efforts, for the conversion of the people. Having parted with our Christian friends, and the natives of Jaulna, we set off for Biidnapoor, a walled village, about twelve miles distant, containing up- wards of four hundred houses. DEIFICATION OF A MURDERER. The first thing that drew our attention after leav- ing the town, was the gallows upon which a Hin- doo was hung a short time ago, for the murder of his mother ; and whose putrid body was afierwards worshipped by multitudes of the ignorant and su- perstitious natives. The account of this horrid murder, and the abominable deification of the vile murderer, as published in the Bombay Durpun, is as follows : " Some time ago, a person residing in the lines of the 28th regiment, Madras Native Infantry, com- mitted the atrocious murder of his own mother. He was tried and condemned by a court martial, and sentenced to be hanged." The following is an extract of the sentence. "Mootooswamy, camp-follower, placed in con- finement by order of colonel John Wolfe, commanding the light field division of the Hydrabad subsidiary force. " Charge. For wilful murder, in having at Jaulna, on the 24th day of August 1832, wilfully, and of 280 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Deification of a murderer. his malice aforethought, made an assault upon Gun- gama, camp-follower, mother of the said Mootoos- wamy, and then and there, violently struck with a chapper, the said Gungama, on the right side of the head, and thereby inflicted a mortal wound, whereof the said Gungama died, at the same place, imme* diately afterwards." The prisoner was found guilty, and, by the order of the Commander-in-chief, was hung in chains, in sight of the principal bazaar of Jaulna, on the 29th of October following. " Can it be imagined," the writer adds, " that such a monster of iniquity as this, could be deified 1 Yet true it is, that he was raised to the honour. Shoilly after his execution and suspension in chains, it was confidently affirmed by some interested Brah- muns, that a lame person was restored to the use of his limbs; that a blind person was restored to sight ; and that various other marvels were performed, through the putrified droppings from his body. This rumour getting abroad, immense numbers flock- ed to the gibbet to perform pwja (worship), many of them in hope of obtaining cures fiom divers diseases, I was from curiosity led to the spot one evening, when I saw several persons collected around the place. The dead body was decorated with flowers, and a half naked Brahmun was ringing a bell, and vociferating. These circumstances were brought, at length, to the notice of the officer commanding the division, who, perceiving that the object of the IN INDIA. 281 Remarks of a Hindoo on the subject. public exposure of the corpse was defeated, took measures to prevent the recurrence of such absur- dities. The godship of the deceased seems to have vanished by \us fiat, and, what is siill more wonder- ful, none of the cures are now forth-coming. "I am, sir, your obedient servant, "Miles. "December 24th, 1832." Upon this letter, the editor of the Durpun, a native of Bombay, remarks: "The letter of our correspondent 'Miles' brings to notice an instance of superstitious credulity, which, although it may have occurred among the lowest and most ignorant of the people, cannot fail to excite feelings of abhorrence and disgust. It is impossible not to commiserate the moral condition of those who could be, for a moment, persuaded to be- lieve, that such a monster as the murderer of his own mother, had obtained the favour of the Deity, and that his putrid carcass had been endowed with the power of working miraculous cures. As to those who could frame the impious thought; industriously circulate it among the ignorant multitude, and de- ceive them into the belief, with tales fabricated for the purpose, we know no terms which can express the del-estation in which they ought to be held. "Whether the wretch who lent himself to uphold the * damning lie,' was a Brahrnun or a Muhar, his act is so repugnant to every sentiment and feel- ing with which men should regard the holiness of 28% MISSIONARY JOURNAL Awful delusion. A deserted fort. the Almighty, that we caa scarcely beheve he will be acknowledged by any caste or community. Every good man, we are sure, will reprobate his vileness." It would be difficult to describe our feelings on see- ing the gallows, and the bleached bones of this murderer, which still hang from the top of the gal- lows, enclosed in irons. One would scarcely believe that any persons could be so lost to all sense of right and wrong, as to adore the corrupted body of this vile matricide; but when men are given up of God to believe a lie, there is nothing too absurd for their faith to compass. We asked the Hindoos who ac- companied us, if they believed in the wonders said to have been wrought here. They said they did not, but many did. If it were not that the arm of authority deters the people from crowding here to worship these bones, it would, no doubt, become a place of general resort for the blind, the lame, and the diseased. A temple may yet be erected in this place, and the name of Mootooswamy may be as fa- mous for wonder working among the Hindoos, as those of St Antony, Euphemia, and a host of others were in the churches in the fifth and sixth centuries. Leaving the gallows, we visited the fort, where we found a few seapoys, whom we supplied with tracts. They at first refused to admit us, but, on telling them who we were, they told us to walk in. The fort is not used now as a means or place of de- fence. It is rapidly going to ruins. Only a few IN INDIA. 283 A disagreeable lodging. Budnapoor. seapoys are stationed there, with the design, we suppose, of preventing any of the natives from en- tering it, or of making any use of it. As the evening was far advanced, we made no stay in Old Jaulna, but rode on to Budnapoor. We passed through several small villages on our way, and only delayed long enough to distribute a few tracts among the people. We reached Budnapoor late in the evening, and found a lodging place in a small and pent up room, immediately within the gate. This is decidedly the worst place we have yet had to stop in ; but we can afford to have a Httle surplusage of bodily inconvenience after the spiri- tual feast we have had. What renders this place so exceedingly unpleasant is, that this gate is the great thoroughfare of the village. All the flocks of sheep and goats, and herds of cattle belonging to the villagers, come in and go out at this gate. The clouds of dust which they raise in going to and fio, are almost enough to blind and suffocate those whose lot it may be to be exposed to them. We sought in vain for a better place, but were compelled to remain in our dusty abode till Monday. BUDNAPOOR. Sabbathf 2d. The dust, the noisy dogs, and still more noisy people, prevented us from enjoying any thing like a refreshing sleep last night. We arose early, and walked out of the village to breathe, if pos- 284 MISSrONARY JOURNAL Preaching to the people. sible, a little pure air, though it should be hot, for we were literally covered with dusi in the house. We returned somewhat refreshed. After breakfast we assembled a number of people together near the gate, and made known to them the Gospel of Christ. The most of the people were Mussulmen. They were civil and pohte. We gave them a few tracts. The Hindoos also were civil, and listened attentively to what we said. Several of the Hindoos, the kar- koon* of the village, and others came into the house we occupied, and spent a considerable time in con- versing with us about ihe Christian religion. They w^ere quite inquisitive, but this may be accounted for from the fact that they had not heard of Jesus till we came and addressed them. And so it must be in every village through which the Missionary may pass on his tours. Many may not hear the Missionary speak, and those who do may not inform the others. Feeling desirous, if possible, to find a place in the village where we could remain in quietness, for at least a part of the day, we went to the temple of Ram and Seeta, at the other end of the village. We found a very comfortable place near the temple, and told the people present that we wished to remain there for the remainder of the day. The priest who officiated in the temple, told us we could not stay in the place we had chosen, though it was not a sacred * Karkoan, the town clerk. IN INDIA. 285 Visit the temple of Ram and Seeta. place. It was in vain that we told him we were weary, and, after remaining for a few hours, w^e would return to our stopping place, and leave him. Some of the people present seemed willing that we should stay, but the angry priest still refused to give his consent. As the apartment we were in was not devoted to any religious purposes, we told him that his anger was useless, for we were determined to remain for some houi's. The priest then left us in a rage. Mr Read, after conversing w'ith a few natives present, and supplying them with tracts, laid himself down on an earthen bench to rest, and spent the remainder of the day in that part of the village. I returned to our lodgings, and, finding a small room over the gateway which was occupied by a seapoy, and was in neat order, I asked his permission to stay in it, which he very cheerfully granted. Here I spent the remainder of this Sabbath in reading the Scriptures and studying the prophecies. Before returning fiom the temple of Ram and Seeta, (that is, of the god Ram and his wife) I asked permission to see the temple. The priest opened the door of the temple, and, after washing his feet, w^ent in, but would not permit me even to touch the door, or the door posts. I sat down upon the steps, and, after having put him to the trouble of exhibiting to me the idols I wished to see, and of telling me his ideas of their respective virtues, I made known to him a better way of salvation, and the only way through the Lord Jesus Christ. 286 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A temple full of gods. Shalegrams. In this small temple I counted more than seventy brass godSi of differentkincls,and more than a hundred stones taken from the river Nurbudda, called sha-le- grams. Stones of a similar description are found in a river in the country of Napal, in the north of India. The sha-le-grams are esteemed the most sacred stones in India. They are black and smooth. Those in this temple were ovate, and the lower surface flattened. They were all perforated by worms or by the hand of man. The Hindoos say the perfora- tions are the work of God. In these perforations spiral curves arise, which reach from the lower in- ternal surface to the top of the cavil y. In many of them, spires arise from both the upper and lower surface, and meet in the middle. They are of this shape. Sha-le-gram, According to the number of spiral curves in each, the stone is supposed to contain Vishnoo, in various characters. For example, such a stone perforated in one place only, with /owr spiral curves in the perfo- ration, and with marks resembling a cow's foot, con- tains Lukshume, J^arayun, that is, the god Vishnoo and his wife, Lukshume. Some of the stones are IN INDIA. 287 Sacred stones. Indifference to the subject of religion. said to contain the Lingum, and then they are con- sidered as emblems of Sheve, the third peison of the Hindoo triad. Lingum, In vain did I attempt to reason with the priest about the folly of worshipping stones. He saw that they could not move without his assistance, and that they had not even the appearance of eyes to see, or of ears to hear. This he acknowledged, but stili maintained that God dwelt in them, and that they ought to be worshipped. I gave him some tracts and left him. As I was not permitted to touch these stones, I could not tell of what they are composed. It is said that they are not calcareous — that they strike fire with steel, and do not effervesce with acids. In the evening we conversed with some more of the natives. They were civil and quite respectful in their conduct towards us ; but none of them seemed to be much interested in the subject of Christianity. They did not seem to regard it of so much importance as to demand their opposition to it. The inquiries they made seemed rather through cu- riosity, or for talk's sake, than any thing else. 288 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A Sabbath among the heathen. Externally, this day showed no marks of its being the Sabbath of the Lord. The Hindoos have no Sabbath. All days are alike to them, except such as are devoted to the service of some imaginary god. Of these days, that are esteemed hohj, there are about a hundred and fifty in the year, but no one of them is observed by all the Hindoos, unless it be such as the first day of their year. Certain castes and classes of Hindoos keep one day sacred, and others keep another. So that, to the mere observer, every day seems alike. The Mussulmen esteem, as we do, the one-seventh of the time sacred. Friday is their Sabbath. They, however, seldom if ever relinquish their work on this day. They may, on this day, be a little more particular in saying their prayers, and in bathing themselves, and may go to the mosques or musjids, if near, but return to re- sume their daily avocations. In Budnapoor all was confusion to-day, and, no doubt, it is so every day. Somebody appeared to be the great Narud Moonee (exciter of quarrels) among the people, for nearly the whole day some were engaged in quarreling ; and, so far as we could learn, the quarrels were about pee.* There is one thing to be said about these Hindoo quarrels, they seldom, if ever, end in the injury of the bodies of the persons concerned. When two men or wo- men among the Hindoos fall out, they express their * Pice, a small copper coin, nearly the value of a cent. IN INDIA. 289 The Sabbath abolished by the Hindoos. rage in words, and not by blows. At first one speaks and then the other answers; but soon this mode isdrop- ped, and each one speaks as loud and as fast as he can, till he has exhausted his vocabulary of wrathful words. When this is done, they voluntarily separate, and walk away, muttering something against each other, without knowing the replies which are made. A crowd almost always collects around the combat- ants, who hear the dispute, and laugh at the folly of the persons, but seldom interfere to separate them, or to calm their angry spirits. In this heathen land, there is no day of rest for man or beast, and the ill effects of it are seen in both. The adversary of their souls, by abolishing the Sab- bath of the Lord from among them, has deprived ihem of one of their greatest blessings, and has taken the most effectual way to keep them under his oppressive and galling yoke. "I thought upon my ways," says David, " and turned my feet to thy testimonies," but Satan has so devised it, that by keeping them continually on the go, they seem to require what litile leisure time they have for the refreshment of their bodies, and have none left for reflection. The Hindoos are characteristically a thoughtless people. " Our fathers have done so," or "it is our custom," is with the Hindoos a sufficient reason, why they should act as they do. The fact, that there is no day set apart by them for reflection, renders it more difficult to get them to think about eternal things, and of course, renders their conver- 290 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Argument for schools and missionaries. Kurmar. sion the more difficult. Until a change takes place, this defect ought to be remedied, as far as possible, by causing the truth to be brought more frequently in contact with their minds, by the living preacher. And this forms another strong argument, why schools, and especially Christian Missionaries, should be multiplied in the land. The truth must be made to meet the Hindoos upon all occasions, and thus compel them to think; otherwise, how can we expect them to turn unto the Lord ? The har- vest here truly is great, but where are the labourers? Who is there to say, "Lord, here am I; send me?" Where there is one to use this language, there are multitudes who say, practically, " Lord, I pray thee, have me excused." KURMAR. Monday, Sd. We left Budnapoor this morning, at four o'clock, and came to Kurmar, a distance of about thirteen miles. Here we stopped during the day. The only chowdey we could find at first, was a small one, near the gate, and exceedingly dirty. After having had it swept out, and a few handles of water thrown on the floor, to keep down the dust, it seemed more comfortable. Here we had all our things placed, but not content with our place of abode, we searched for another. The people told us there was no other chowdey in the village, but we placed no faith in their declarations, and continued IN INDIA. 291 An account of the Gosavees. Their vileuess. our search. Near the chowdey we had taken, we saw a small gate, not more than two feet wide, which led into an enclosure, which was surrounded by a high mud wall. Through this we entered, and, to our astonishment, we found a large and neat chowdey, which was occupied by a Gosavee, who had most unjustly appropriated the whole place for his own private use. The chowdey is about fifty feet long and about fifteen wide. At one end, the Gosavee'^ had a small room partitioned oflT, where he * Gosavee or Go-swamee, the lord of the cow — protector of cattle. The Gosavees are worshippers of Maha-deve (Sheve), whom they represent as seated on a white bull. They are called holy beggars, and act as the spiritual guides of many. Their practice, howevjr, doea not deserve the name holy which is given them. TRey are forbidden to marry, but this only serves as a cloak for their licentiousness, as it is notorious that they are, (or have been) guilty of stealing children, of both sexes, and of carrying off with them, through the force of their delusions, other men's wives. These Gosavees are occasionally soldiers, traders, or mendicants. In the latter capacity they travel in large bodies through the country, and compel the villagers on their route to support them. Violent contests sometimes take place, when the mendicant troop is large, and the village too poor to bear their exorbitant demands, but it always ends in the severe castigation of the villagers. This violence is not author- ized by British law, but these sturdy beggars never fail in ob- taining a supply equal to their wants, by working on the preju- dices of the people, where they cannot use violence. In many places, the native government has shown such a reverence for these deceivers, that a regular tax has been assessed for their support It is done by laying one per cent upon the land reve- nue, which is paid into the public treasury for their use. Jt is §a'd that they make good soldiers. BajceRao, the Ex-Pash- 292 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A comfortable lodging. kept all his vessels, and where he slept; the other part was wholly unoccupied. Here this Hindoo monk lived alone, and by his pretensions to superior sanctity, led many of the people to think that the place was too holy for them even to enter it, and thus was left to the undisturbed possession of the chowdey. Knowing that the chowdey was public property, we told the Gosavee that we wished to oc- cupy it for the day and night. To this he most ob- stinately objected, declaring that it was his place, and that "we would defile it, by coming into it, and therefore could not have it. We then reminded him that the chowdey is the property of the government, and that we would occupy it, wMiether he w^as will- ing or not. Our beds, trunks, &c., were brought into the chowdey, while the Gosavee, muttering out his anger against us, retired into his hermitage. JULGAUM AND SULTANA. On our way to Kurtnar, we stopped at the villages of Julgaum and Sultana, and distributed a few tracts wa, had about seven thousand of them in his army, when the war broke out between the Mahrattas and the English, in the year 1817, and some hundreds of them fell in the battles of Kirkee, Poona, and Koraigaon Among the Gosavees, there are different sects, who are distinguished by their dress, and appear- ance. One of these sects go about in puris naturalibus, and covered with ashes. They keep up the succession to their pro- perty by disciples, who originally belonged to other castes of Hindoos, purchased or procured when children. IN INDIA. 293 No service from Hindoos witliout pay. among the people. These villages, we presume, do not contain more than fifty or sixty dwelling houses, though the walls of perhaps more than double that number are standing there, as monuments of the decaying state of these places. Where the people have gone, who lately inhabited these villages, we know not. Their poverty, and the rigour of the laws under which they lived, may have induced them to seek another and a better abode, within the territory of the Hon. East India Company. When we reached Kurmar, we told the Vaskur* of the village to procure us some milk, &c., but he refused, like another one, on a former occasion, to do any thing for us. He said, that all the cows were in the jungles, and that they would not return till evening ; and as for getting the things we wanted, it was out of the question. The promise of pay for his services soon answered all his objections. The custom of the Hindoos is to boil all the milk pro- cured in the morning, which they may not have used at the lime, and in this way it is kept sweet, in this hot climate, till night. To procure boiled milk, at any time of the day, there is seldom any dif- ficulty in the country. To procure /res/i milk would have been a difficult thing, but to procure the other was easy. The Vaskur, however, did not know whether we would not act as some travellers have * The Vaskur is the person appointed to keep the gate of a village, and is usually a Muhar, a man of low caste. 294 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Preaching to the lame and the blind. Hindoo subtlety. done, viz., make use of his services, and not pa}' him. This being settled, all was well. In all our journey, we have taken special care not to employ any one to do any thing for us, without rewarding him for his services. We deem it a Christian duly, as well as good policy so to do. When it was known that two sahibs had arrived in the village, all the blind persons, and cripple?, who could come, were brought to us, hoping that we vy'ould give them some money. We had them all seated on the ground around us, and after telling them of the Saviour ; of His compassion to the poor, the blind, the lame, &c., while on earth, and urging them to accept of Him as their Saviour, we gave them some pice, and dismissed them. The appear- ance of these blind persons was truly affecting. While we were telling them of the Saviour, they could not refrain from expressing aloud their joy, and turned their sightless eyeballs toward heaven, as if to express their thankfulness to God for the good news. Their friends may tell them, when we are gone, that Chnst is only the name we give to their god Krishnoo, and that it is Krishnoo who has done so much, and felt so much for them. That the more cunning of the Hindoos do, in some cases, pursue this course, to undo all that we have done, and to rivet the chains of ignorance and superstition upon themselves and others more firmly, facts abun- dantly testify. They do not pretend to deny the facts which we state, but say that all these things IN INDIA. 295 Preaching to Gosavees. were done by their own gods, who are called, by us, by a different name. They try to impress upon others the idea that we and they, in many things, beUeve ahke ; and that their rehgion and ours is very Httle different, the one from the other, and, of course, there can be no use of a change. The ad- versary of souls understands fully how to accomplish the great work he has undertaken, viz., to destroy the souls of men. Having dismissed this company of the blind, some Gosavees, encouraged by their success in obtaining alms from us, came and preferred their claim also, but with different success. We sent them away, after having told them of the Saviour, without any money. One of the Gosavees appeared among the others, shamefully naked. He said he had come from Benares on foot, and in his present naked con- dition, and that he was on his way to Poona and Bombay, where he expected to be shortly. We re- proved them all, and him in particular, for their sloth and sinfulness, and lack of decency, and sent them away. These wretches are a great nuisance, and, we may add, a great curse to the people. We saw them frequently through the day, going about among the people to beg from them what they needed. They pretend that they are holy men, and have, through the greatness of their holiness, and deadness to the things of this world, arrived at such a state of mind that objectsof sense cannot affect f/iem in the least, and garments of decency are therefore useless. Such 296 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The character of the Gosavees. Aurungabad. is their profession, but their practice loudly declares that they still are men, and that they are affected quite as much by the objects of sense, as others ; yea, more, that they are the slaves of their own corrupt passions. Let a man but refuse to give to one of these beggars the thing he demands, and at once he is in a rage. Not only so, he will imprecate the vengeance of the gods upon the refuser, and thus, if possible, terrify him into a compliance with his wishes. These holy men are as far from holiness as the East is from the West, and the people know it ; but, strange as it may appear, no one of the people has independence of spirit sufficient to oppose, publicly, the pride and hypocrisy of these men, though they speak of it frequently among themselves, and groan under the oppressive burden of being beggar-ridden. Custom, with them, passes for law. It is the ctts- tom of the Gosavees to beg, and the custom of the people to give, and this gives the quietus to any spirit of exertion in this matter. AURUNGABAD. Tuesday, 4th. We left Kurmar at an early hour this morning, and, after a short delay in the village of Chicultana, came to Aurungabad. We re- mained about two hours in a musjid, with the ex- pectation that our servants would find us. But as they entered the city by a different gate from the one we entered, they missed us. It was vain to IN INDIA. 297 Stay at Mr Roper's. American books. search for them in a, city so large as that of Aurun- gabad, and after many fruitless inquiries for them, we went to tlie Cantonmenis, where the Europeans reside, and, finding Mr Roper, we were most cordi- dialiy received by him into his house. He imme- diately sent a seapoy in search of our servants and luggage, who returned in half an hour informing us that he had found them. At the kind and pressing invitation of Mr Roper, we agreed to remain with him for the week ; and, after resting ourselves, to visit with him the celebrated caves of EHora, which are about fifteen miles from Aurungabad. We received letters from Bombay which inform us of the arrival of Mr Allen, and that he intends coming to Ahmednuggur by the way of Poona. This information induced us to change our plan of going to Nassik at the present. We concluded to return to Ahmednuggur by the way of Toka, a Brahminical village on the banks of the sacred river Godavery. In looking over Mr Roper's library to-day, I was gratified to find the " Memoirs of Harriet Newell,' and "Visits of Mercy." These little American works have found their way into the heart of India, and may we not hope that they may be the means, in the hand of God, of exciting some in India to feel, and to do much for the poor and benighted children of men, as they have awakened the sympathies of many in America and in Europe. I was the more rejoiced to see these works, as good books, and such 298 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Tomb of Aurungzebe's daughter. as the children of Europeans would be inclined to read, are rather scarce in the interior of the country. Let us rejoice, however, that the number is on the increase. Wednesday, 5th. A portion of this day I spent in reading and writing. In the afternoon Mr Roper kindly took us out in his gardee,* to see the city, and especially the mausoleum of Aurungzebe's daughter, which was erected about one hundred and sixty years ago, at an expense of nine lacks of rupees, or four hundred thousand dollars. This splendid edi- fice stands within an enclosure, containing about thirty acres of ground, which was once in a high state of cultivation. It was laid out in gardens. All the walks are beautifully paved. The numerous fountains of water, the water courses, the large and shady trees, together with the more humble shrub- bery which line the walls and are scattered through- out the enclosure, make it a truly beautiful place. On the right and the left, as you enter the splendid gateway which leads to the tomb, stand two mus- jids, (houses for prayer). Here, in days past, the Koran was read, and the royal family united Jn their worship, but they are now forsaken, and no one en- ters them in honour of the false prophet. The walls around the tomb and gardens are thick, and contain a multitude of cells. It is said that here, hordes of religious mendicants, and others supported by the benevolence of the emperor, found an abode. * A small wagon, In general use among the people. IN INDIA. 299 The tomb and its enclosures. The foundation of the building is about one hun- dred feet square. From the four corners of this foundation, or platform, minarets arise to the height of eighty or ninety feet. The platform is about twelve feet high. From the centre of the main building rises a large and beautiful dome, beneath which, in a small enclosure, lie the remains of the princess. We descended by a flight of narrow steps, and saw the spot beneath which the sacred deposit is laid. A framework of wood now surrounds the place, which was not always the case. There is no marble slab with an inscription on it, to tell the stranger whose remains sleep beneath the elevated mound of chunam. A thin garment covered the grave, and on it were strewed a few flowers, and a few shreds of cotton and silken cords of different co- lours. The neat workmanship and good taste dis- played in this building, in the large brazen doors — the immense slabs of white marble, highly polished and most beautifully executed in filagree work, and the highly polished chunamed apartments, all com- bined to show that the Moghuls once carried the arts of masonry and sculpture to a degree of perfection that has not been excelled by modern artists. We ascended to the top of one of the minarets by a flight of winding stairs of stone in the inside, and from this eminence had a beautiful.view of the city, and of the adjacent country. The interior of the city presents the usual appearances of a deserted capital, viz. only half peopled, and a large portion 300 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A view of the city. of it in ruins. The number of mosques and miisjids within the walls is still great, though many of them are deserted, and were we to judge from this cir- cumstance, we must conclude ihat the spiritual as well as the temporal glory of Mohammedan power, has gone down in India. Aqueducts are to be seen in every part of the city. The water w^hich supplies a large portion of the city, is brought under ground from a distance of some miles, but when, or by whom these w^orks were constructed, we could not learn from any one of whom we sought infor- mation. Aurungabad* was originally called Gurka. The Moghuls got possession of it in the year 1634. It rapidly increased in size, and becoming the favourite residence of Aurungzebe, it received from him its present name. It continued for some time the me- tropohs of the Dekhun, after the modern Nizams be- came independent of Delhi, until they quitted it for Hydrabad. It is within the Nizam's territories, but its glory has departed. It stands amid an extensive plain, about two hundred and eighty miles in a north- east direction from Bombay, and its distance from Hydrabad, the present capital of the Nizam, is about two hundred and ninety miles. Its present population is about one hundred thousand — formerly six hundred thousand. * The word is compounded of aurung the throne, and ahad the house ox abode ^ meaning the abode of the throne. IN INDIA. 301 Visit to a Parspe's dwelling and gardens. After leaving the mausoleum, we visited the gar- dens of a rich Parsee, who resides a short distance from the cantonments. His gardens are in a high state of cultivation. They are well watered from a fountain in the garden near his dwelling. Every thing looked fresh, and the grapes which he raises are of the first quality. He kindly treated us to as many as we chose. The beauty of these gardens, the neatness of his dwellinghouse, and the comfort in which he lived, and especially his hospitality to us, made us for a moment forget that we are still in a heathen land, and that the religious system of this individual leads him to reverence the sun, the ocean, fire, the dog, &c., as well as to reject the salvation of the Gospel of Christ. Thursday, 6th. This day we spent in the house, occupied principally in readingandin writing. In the evening we walked out, and conversed with a few natives. Those with whom we conversed, seemed disposed to listen. The subject, however, was new to them, and very few of those with whom we con- versed had ever heard of or seen a Missionary. The people here genernlly use the Hindoosthanee lan- guage, and tracts in tirat language might have been distributed in abundance, but our supply is exhausted. The Brahmuns use the Mahratta language, but, if a Missionary sliould be located here, it would be of more importance to him to study the Hindoosthanee and Persian languages than the Mahratta. Aurun- gabad presents a fine field for Missionary labour, and 2 a 302 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Missionaries for the Mohammedans needed. ought to be occupied just as soon as a labourer can be found to enter it. Although it is under the Ni- zam of Hydrabad, still he might labour without any molestation from that government. It is much to be regretted that so little is doing to reclaim the followers of Mohammed from their delusions through- out India. The Missionaries on this side of India confine, in a very great degree, their labours to the Hindoos. There ought to be some Missionaries especially for the Mussulman population. If syste- matic and well directed Missionary operations could be carried on among this people in Aurungabad, who can tell but that this independent government would, ere long, become a Christian government. As a people, they may be more bitterly opposed to the Gospel than the Hindoos are, but they are more enhghtened, nor are they so grovelling in their feel- ings as the Hindoos, though in haughtiness they far surpass them. The probability is, that they would, if they were instructed, embrace the Gospel as soon as the Hindoos, if not sooner. This field is ripe, fully ripe for the harvest, but where are the reapers ? Is there one to be found whose heart in- clines him to live and labour for the salvation of this respectable and high minded people ? Would that many from the various seminaries in America and Europe might enter this important field. l^ INDIA. Caves of Ellora. CAVES OF ELLORA. Friday, 1th. This morning about three o'clock we left Aurungabad, in company with Mr Roper and his son, to visit the Caves of Ellora, which we reached before the heat of the day. The distance is about fifteen miles, and the road, in many places, rough and hilly. On our way, we passed the famous city of Dowlutabad, wliich is about seven miles north- west of Aurungabad. This is supposed to be the Tagara of Arian, a populous city two thousand years ago. The name signifies the house of wealth. The indi- vidual who has charge of the fort permits no one to enter unless he have a permit from the Nizam of Hydrabad. As we had no permit, we were denied the privilege of examining the place for ourselves. The following description is taken from " Hamilton's Hindoosthan," and is, we doubt not, correct, as far as it goes. Dowlutabad* orDeoghurf is a town and a fortress, seven miles northvvest of Aurungabad. The fortress is formed of an insulated mass of granite, about three thousand yards from the range of hills on the north- ward and westward, and presents to the eye a shape not unlike a compressed bee hive, except that the * Dowlut, wealth, and abad, the house. j Deoghur, from deo, god, and ghur, house. 304 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Dowlutabad. Description of the fort. lower part, for nearly one third of the way up, is scarped like a wall, and presents, all round, a per- pendicular cliff. It has never been accurately mea- sured, but appears to be about five hundied feet to the summit, which is almost a point. The scarp of the rock, down to the counter scarp, may be about a hundred and fifty feet ; and the scarp below the glacis from thirty to forty feet, which, added to one hundred and fifty, will give about one hundred and eighty for nearly the whole height of the scarped cliff. An outer wall of no strength surrounds the pettah, (village) above which towers the hill which forms the citadel, but up to the ditch three other lines of walls and gates are passed. The causeway across the ditch does not admit of moie than two persons at once, and a building with battlements de- fends it on the opposite side. After passing the ditch, the ascent is through an excavation into the heart of the rock, at first so low that a person is obliged to stoop nearly double, but, after a few paces, it opens into a high vault, lighted by torches, out of which the ascent is by a winding passage, gradually sloping, cut thiough the interior of the body of the hill. This passage is about twelve feet high, and the same in breadth, with a regular rise. At certain distances from this gallery are trap doors, with flights of steps to the ditch below, only wide enough to admit a man to pass, also cut through the solid rock to the water's edge, and not exposed to the fire of the assailants, unless they gain IN INDIA. 305 Description of the fort. the very crest of the glacis. There are, Ukewise, other passages and recesses for depositing stores. Af- ter ascending the main passage for some distance, it opens into a hollow in the rock about twenty feet square. On one side, leaning against the cliff, a large iron plate is seen, with an immense iron poker. This plate is intended to be laid over the outlet, and a fire placed on it, should the besiegers make them- selves masters of the subterraneous passages, and there is a hole three feet in diameter, which is in- tended to convey a strong curient of air to the fire. On the road to the summit, wliich is very steep, and, in some places, covered with brushwood, there are some houses, towers and gates. The governor's house is an excellent one, surrounded by a verandah with tvv'elve arches, and through this house passes the only road to the top. Towards the summit the ridge becomes very narrow, and, on the peak, where the Nizam's flag flies, stands a large brass twenty- four pounder ; but, besides this, tliere aie only a few two or three pounders. As the hill contains reser- voirs of water, if properly defended, it could be cap- tured only by famine. - When the Mohammedans under Allah Ud Deen carried their arms into this part of the Dekhun, about A. D. 1293, Deoghur was the residence of a powerful Hindoo Raja, who was defeated, and his capital taken and plundeied of immense riches. In 1306, the fortress, and the surrounding district, were reduced to permanent subjection by Mallik Naib, of 2 a* S06 MISSIONARY JOURNAL History of Dowlutabad. Delhi. In ihe early part of the fourteenth century, the emperor Mohammed made an attempt to transfer the seat of government from Delhi to Deoghur, the name of which he changed to Dowlutabad. To effect this purpose, he almost ruined Delhi, in order to drive the inhabitants to his new capital, seven hun- dred and fifty miles from theirold habitations, but his endeavours were without avail, so that he was oblig- ed to desist, after having done much mischief. About the year 1595, Dowlutabad surrendered to Ahmed Nizam Shah of Ahmednuggur, and on the fall of that dynasty, was taken possession of by Mal- lik Amber, an Abyssinian slave, who was reckoned the ablest general, politician and financier of his age. His successors reigned until 1634, when the city and fortress were taken by the Moghuls, during the reign of Shah Jehan, and the seat of government transfer- red to the neighbouring (own of Guika, since called Aurungabad. Along with the rest of the Moghul Dekhun it fell into the possession of Nizam Ul Mulk, and has continued with his descendants, theNizams of Hydrabad, ever since, with the exception of the year 1758, during which it was held by M. Bussy, but he was obhged to abandon it, when ordered to withdraw with his army to the Carnatic, by his su- perior officer, M. Lally. In passing from Dowlutabad, the first thing that strikes the attention of the traveller, as worthy of special notice, is a paved road, made over a hill, near the village of Roza. It was made at the sole ex- IN INDIA. 307 The village of Roza. Paper manufactory. Aurungzebe's grave. pense of a woman, who raised the whole amount, equal to many thousand dollars, from the sale of cow-dung, formed into cakes, and sold for fuel; and this was done to procure for herself an admission into heaven. The ruins of the little house in which she lived and prosecuted her self-denying work, are still to be seen. The natives speak of her work as highly meritorious, and doubt not but that she was admitted into happiness for her work. In the village of Roza we stopped a short time, and distributed a few tracts^ and conversed with a cluster of idle men, who were seated in the veran- dah of a house close by the road side. Roza is noted for its paper manufactories. The paper made here, exceeds any thing of the kind that we have seen, for durability, in this countiy. The rains do not affect this paper in the way they do that which is brought from Europe, and -especially from Ame- rica. It is adapted to the climate, and will remain good for ages, as many of their books sufficiently testify. The most interesting circun^stance in connection with the village of Roza is, that here lie the remains of Aurungzebe. He died at Aurungabad, but his body was brought here for interment. Although he erected splendid mausoleums to the memory of his wife and daughter, and reigned for half a cen- tury, with a degree of pomp and splendour seldom, if ever, equalled, yet he requested that nothing should be erected over his grave, to show to all the 308 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Caves of EUora. people the vanity of human glory. This has given a degree of sanctity to the place, in the eyes of the Mohammedans, and has become a kind of burying place for kings. The place is esteemed healthy. Having arrived at the village near the caves, we put up our horses, and procuring a guide, who led us by a narrow and winding path down the moun- tain, we were brought suddenly before the large and magnificent temple of Kylas. We were struck' with astonishment in beholding these mighty works of art, and were compelled, for awhile, to stand still, and gaze upon them with amnzement. To be able to give a minute and adequate description of all of these excavations, it would be necessary to spend a w^eek in (he examination of them. All we could do, during the few hours we remained, was to pass hastHy from one excavation to another, to get a glimpse of them all. To inspect them minutely was out of the question. The hill where these ex- cavations are made is crescent shaped, and the slope is generally easy, but in many places, the rock pre- sents a perpendicular face of from twenty to a hun- dred feet high, or more. To truncate the hill in this manner must have cost immense labour, how much more, then, must it have taken to excavate these caves for a mile in length? The external and internal appearance of the caves are much alike. They are three stories high. The rooms are, in general, about sixty feet long, and from thirty to fifty feet wide, including their respective verandahs. IN INDIA. 309 Caves of Ellora. The temple of Kylas. The ceilings are supported by massy pillars, about ten or twelve feet high. Every room contains a number of gigantic images. The largest are in a sitting posture. In some of them, the lingum, or an idol, which was the object of special worship, is en- closed in a small room, which stands out from the wall, so as to permit a person to walk around it. Here and there small rooms, for some secret pur- poses, are cut deep into the rock which forms the back w^^ll of the rooms, but having no light, we preferred not to enter them. Steps lead from the lower to the upper stories of the caves; but in every case, each cave, with its three stories, stands sepa- rate from the others, at least, we could discover no medium of communication. The figures in these roonfts are all, more or less, mutilated or defaced, but show clearly that they have been formed with much good taste and skill. There is a beauty of symmetry running through the whole of the figures, whether they be small or large (as those on the out- side, which are thiriy feet and more), or grouped to- gether, which cannot but excite the admiration of the beholder, and convince him that the art of sculp- ture had reached its acme when these caves were excavated. The most wonderful thing to be seen here, is the temple of Kylas or Paradise. In front of it stands a very spacious and fine gateway. On each side of the gateway, there is a projection reaching to the first story, with much sculpture, and handsome bat- 310 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The temple of Kylas. tlements. Over the gale is a balcony. On the outside of the upper story of the gateway, are pillars that have much the appearance of a Grecian order. From the gateway you enter a vast area, cut down through the solid rock of the mountain, to make room for an immense tenjple, of the complex form, whose wonderful structure, variety, profusion, and minuteness of ornament, beggar all description. This temple, which is excavated from the upper region of the rock, and appears like a grand build- ing, is connected with the gateway by a bridge, left out of the rock, as the mass of the mountain was excavated. Beneath tliis bridge, at the end opposite the entrance, there is a figure of Bhuwanee, sitting on a lotus, with two elephants with their trunks joined over her head, as if fighiing. On each side of the passage under the bridge is an elephant. Behind these elephants, are ranges of apartments on each side, handsomely decorated with figures. Advanced in the area, are two obelisks, of a square form, handsomely graduated to the commencement of the capitals, which seem to have been crowned with ornaments, probably a single elephant stood on each, as the remains of one are yet visible. Passing tlirougli the gateway you enter the area, and proceeding under a small bridge, pass a solid square mass of rock, which supports the bull J^un- dee (sacred to Sheve), stationed above. The sides of this recess are profusely sculptured with pillars and figures of various forms ; having passed it, you IN INDIA. 311 The temple of Kylas. come to the passage under another small bridge, be- neath which there is, on one side, a gigantic figure of Raja Bhoj, in a sitting posture, surrounded by a group of other figures. Opposite to the figure of Raja Bhoj, is another of equal dimensions, with ten hands. At the end of this short passage commenced the body of the grand temple, the excavation of which is in the upper story, which is here ascended by a flight of steps on each side. Having ascended a few steps, you enter into a handsome open portico, supported by two pillars to- wards the bridge, and two pilasters that join it to the body of the temple ; the grand apartment of which you enter from the portico by four handsome steps and a doorway twelve feet high by six broad ; on each side of which are gigantic figures, holding in their hands weapons for defence, or as badges of their authority. They are represented to be the door keepers. Advancing a few paces into the lem- ple, which is supported by two rows of pillars, be- sides the walls, which are decorated with pilasters, there is an intermission of one pillar on each side, leading to the right and to the left, to an open por- tico projecting from the body of the temple. Oppo- site the door, and at the end of this saloon, is the recess of the Ling and of Mahadev, to which there is an ascent of five steps, and which foims the ter- mination of this fine saloon. On each side of the door of this recess there is a profusion of sculpture. The whole of the ceiling has been chunamed and 312 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The temple of Kylas. painted. The width of the inner part of the tennple is sixty-one feet ; the height of the ceiling is nearly eighteen feet ; the length from the portico entering the temple to the back wall of the temple, is one hun- dred and three feet six inches ; including the raised platform behind the temple, it will be one hundred and forty-two feet six inches ; the two side por- ticos each, length thirty-four feet ten inches, breadth fifteen feet four inches ; the height of the temple is one hundred feet. The area in which the temple stands is in length, from the gateway to the oppo- site scarp, two hundred and forty-seven feet, and in breadth one hundred and fifty feet. Besides the grand saloon and the porticos adjoin- ing it, there are five or six other rooms, or small tem- ples, on the platform back of the main body of the temple. These are full of figures of men and wo- men fantastically, and in many instances, lascivi- ously grouped together. The outside of the whole temple is covered with figures of men, and gods, and demon?, engaged in combat or sport, or placed there as mere matters of ornament, and all of them in alto-relievo. What increases the astonishment of the beholder is, that the whole of the temple, with its figures, porticos, pillars, obelisks, elephants, bridges, &c., is but one piece of rock. To design and execute such a work, speaks highly in favour of those who were concerned in it. When or by whom these caves were made, no one knows. The Hin- doos have preserved no records which can throw any IN INDIA. 313 Origin of these caves unknown. light on this subject. All is conjecture, or uncertain tradition, and the inquirer seeks in vain for correct information. The Mohammedans say that they were excavated by Raja Eel, about one thousand years ago. The Brahmuns, on the other hand, say that ihey were made about seven thousand nine hundred years ago (which of course cannot be true), by a Raja Eeloo ; but of this there is no certainty. There can be but little doubt that they owe their origin to the religious and superstitious zeal of some wealthy Raja in ages past ; but how long ago, it is impossible to tell. The temple is no longer considered sacred; still a few Hindoos come occasionally to pay their adora- tions to the Lingum in the temple of Kylas. A Yo- gee* occupies a portion of the saloon, having built for himself a small mound of stones and clay near the door, on which he sils, and where he receives the contributions of the few Hindoos who may come to visit the temple. Considered as mere works of art, it is painful to see the whole of this noble and grand display of genius and talent going to ruins ; but the doom of these works is fixed. They have been consecrated to that which God hales; and they must and will be destroyed. The present condition of these caveSj and the total indifference of the natives generally to them, are strong proofs of the truth of the Bible and * A Yogee is a Hindoo devotee. 2b 314 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Dining under a tree. Healthiness of the place. of the Christian system, which must continue to in- crease until all the idolatrous nations of the earth shall forsake their idols, and until the high and lofty looks of man shall be brought down, and God alone be exalted. That that happy time may soon come, when all the kindreds, and nations, and tongues un- der heaven, shall know and serve the Lord, is, no doubt, the sincere desire and prayer of every reflect- ing Christian. Having finished our examination of these caves, we dined under the shade of a large pimpul tree which stands at a short distance in front of the temple of Kylas. The once sacred stones of a de- mohshed temple served us for a table, and also for chairs. We left the caves a little before sunset, and reached Arungabad by torchlight at ten o'clock. On the top of the hill near the caves, there are many beautiful places for pitching tents; there are also some mosques, which may be occupied by the Europeans who may visit the place. The situation is esteemed more healthy than that of Arungabad, and many go there for the benefit of their health, and for an agreeable change of air. We found se- veral European gentlemen and ladies, who intend to remain there for a few weeks. As the sacredness of the caves is gone, in the estimation of the Hin- doos, it is not made a place of general resort ; and were it not for the Europeans, who occasionally visit the place, the number of native visitors would, no IN INDIA. 315 Employment of time. Distribution of tracts. doubt, be much diminished. Still the caves must remain as monuments of the genius, the enterprise and industry, as well as of tlie superstitious folly of a people who are now characterised by their lack of energy and general inactivity. Saturday, Sth. We spent the day in reading and in studying. As we liave our Mahratta and Hin- doosthanee dictionaries with us, we can prosecute the study of these languages on our tour, with ad- vantages which we cannot enjoy at home. In the evening we rode into the native Bazar and spent some time in conveising with the natives and in dis- tributing tracts. The people were particularly at- tentive to every thing that Dajeba said ; owing, in part, to the fact that they had never before heard a Hindoo speak in favour of Christianity, and in oppo- sition to the superstitions and follies of the people. Our business was principally to give the conversa- tion a proper direction. Dajeba was the chief speak- er, though not the only one on the present occasion. A person to labour with advantage in this place, ought to speak the Hindoosthanee language fluently, and be well supplied with the Scriptures and tracts in the language. We found the people attentive, and not at all disposed to object or cavil. As to the distribution of tracts among the people, we can only say, the people are prepaied to receive them, and a Missionary might do a great deal of good in this way, even befoie he shall have learned to speak, it may be, a sentence of the language. 316 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Sabbath in Aurungabad . Application to have a child baptised. Sabbath, 9th. A few persons were assembled in Mr Roper's parlour, to whom Mr Read preached. A young man, an Indo-Briton, called this morning and wished to get his child baptised. As he seemed entirely ignorant of the design of the ordinance, it was explained to him at considerable length. When he was told that it was his duty to pray m^/i and /or his child, and that he was about to come under ob- ligations, in a public manner, to train up his child for God, which it became him to consider, he said he would not have his child baptised by us, but should go to the Commandant of the station, who would do it without requiring any promises of the kind from him. We learned from a gentleman present, that it is the usual practice for one of the officers at this station (there being no Chaplain) to marry all the persons connected with the regiment, if proper ap- plication be made, and to baptise the children of those Europeans and Indo-Britons who may ask to have the rite administered. As to permitting officers to baptise children, Bishop Hooker would not object, as, under certain circumstances, he allows women to baptise them ; but to us it does not seem proper.* * See Hooker's Ecc. Polity, 1. 5, § 62. IN INDIA. 317 A sacrifice of two lambs. A SACRIFICE. Mr Read went out this evening to converse with the natives, while I remained behind to converse with the children and inembers of Mr Roper's fa- mily. About sunset, while standing in the door, I saw a crowd of people going towards a small tem- ple which was in sight, and near at hand. On learn- ing that they were about to offer two lambs in sacri- fice, I immediately followed them to the temple, be- ing accompanied by Mr Roper and another gen- tleman. There were about forty persons in all, in- cluding the children. It was a family sacrifice, and was offered in the fulfilment of a vow. A few per- sons playing on rude instruments of music, led the procession: then followed two men, bringing the lambs for sacrifice. The one was carried on the shoulders of one of the men, and the other was led. Both of them were decorated with garlands of flow- ers. After these followed a person carrying the sa- cred fire, and then the families concerned. When they arrived at the temple, which is a small mud building of about ten feet square, the people made iheir obeisance to the idol within, and circumambu- lated the temple twice. A lamp was then lit from the fire above mentioned, and placed in the temple immediately before the idol. The person who offi- ciated on this occasion was a priestess, old and dirty, with a wild look and dishevelled hair. She was as- 2 b* 318 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The sacrifice. sisted by a man the counterpart of herself. Her dress was the usual Hindoo dress of the women, viz : a c/io/ee* and loogurda. On the left sleeve of her choke small patches of red flannel were sewed. This was designed to represent the small pox. The priestess marked the foreheads of the people with red paint, such as was on the idol. Having washed her hands in clean water, she took a handful of the small branches of the fcMrfZoo-mm6-tree, containing the leaves, which are exceedingly bitter, and tied them together in the form of a brush, or broom. Tliis she held in her hand, while her assistant poured upon it a handy full of water. While engaged in washing these branches, she continued to mutter something in a low and rapid tone, which no one present could understand, and to which no one appeared to pay any attention. This being over, she ordered her assist- ant to wash the head and forelegs of one of the lambs with water, in which she had thrown some salt and some bitter herbs. The head of the lamb was then marked with red paint. Bitter herbs and salt were given to it to eat, which it refused. Its mouth was then opened, and some of the salt and water and another fluid (but what I could not learn) were forced down its throat. This seemed tostupify the animal, so that being let loose it staggered about among the * The choice is the body dress of the women ; a kind of spen- cer, the sleeves only reaching to the elbows. The loogurda is a cloth of six or eight yards long and a yard wide, which is wrap- ped around the middle, and answers the purpose of a petticoat. IN INDIA. 319 The priestess possessed. people. After stopping for a few minutes, a person gave it a gentle tap on the side of the head, which made it turn its face towards the door of the temple. As soon as this was done, the sacrificer seized it, threw it with force on its left side, the head being towards the door, and immediately cut off it.-! head and the right foreleg by the knee. These were held up before the idol, and then placed before the door of the temple. When the lamb had ceased to move it was dragged to one side, where it v/as left. The priestess, being all this time engaged in muttering something to herself, now stepped forward to the blood, holding the little brush in her hand, and while the sacrificer poured water on it, she sopped it in the blood and water, and proceeded to sprinkle all the people present with it, having first sprinkled some on the idol and on the door posts of the temple. When she came to us she stopped and frowned, as if considering whether to sprinkle us or not. After this she placed herself before the door of the temple, and after muttering a few words to the idol, started back, and in a frantic manner began to jump, and scream, and pull her hair. On a sudden she stopped and was seized with trembling — -her arms were ex- tended — her mouth was open, and her eyes rolled from side to side. Then she jumped, and groaned, and raved, and screamed, and finally fell back, as it were, lifeless to the ground. Her fall was broken by two of the women present, who sprang forward and caught her, which, if they had not done, the jar 320 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Similarity of Jewish and Hindoo sacrifices. of falling would either have brought her to her senses, or made her rave in earnest. After lying on the ground for some minutes, she arose slowly, and gradually resumed her natural appearance. She then told the persons concerned, that their offering was accepted by the god to whom it had been presented ; and proceeded to sacrifice the other lamb. In this case the ceremony was the same as in the other, with the exception that she did not rave nor fall to the ground. All being ended, the company paid her a few pice and returned to their homes, preceded by the musicians, in the manner in which they came. Finding the old priestess pretty calm in mind, and looking intenily at the money she had received, I approached her, and began to make some inquiries about the sacrifice and the meaning of certain things which I had witnessed. But whether siie thought that our intention was to injure her, or expose the fallacy of her craft, I know not. She remained si- lent, and when urged to answer, begaii to whine, and pretended to be afraid of us. We left her with- out gaining any more information about the mode of sacrificing, or the reasons why such and such things are done, other than what we saw. I need not say that the whole of this ceremony interested me exceedingly. There certainly is a striking similarity in some things between this sim- ple mode of sacrificing among the Hindoos, and that practised by the Jews, as recorded in the book of Le- IN INDIA. 321 Similarity of Jewish and Hindoo sacrifices. viticus. The fact of the sacrifices being lambs with- out blemish — that they were brought to the door of the tem{3!e (their tabernacle) — that saltwsis used — that the head and foreleg were waved before the idol — that the people, and idol, and door posts were sprinkled with the blood of the sacrifiice — that hitter herbs or leaves were used with which to sprinkle the people — and tiiat the lambs were left to be con- sumed or eaten by the sacrificer and the priestess : all these things show that sacrifices, as existing among the Hindoos, and as they were among the Jews, must have had one common origin. There is no rational way of accouriting for the existence of sacrifices among the different heathen nations, other than that these nations have received them from the Jews. For, to suppose a Hindoo should imagine that sin could be pardoned by the shedding of blood, is to suppose that sin could be pardoned, according to his system, by the very means in which the greatest sins are committed. Sacrificing in the Hindoo system is an innovation. Its introduction by the Biahmuns, centuries ago, was the very thing which led to war and bloodshed, and finally termi- nated in the division of the people into two sects, which exist yet throughout India ; that is, the sa- crificing Hindoos, and their bitter enemies the Jainas, who reject every thing like sacrificing, and utterly detest the idea of shedding blood. Not only does this rite, but others also among the Hindoos, show that they have drawn largely from the Jewish Scrip- 322 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Demoniacal possessions. tures, though in many cases they are so obscured by the addition of many other foolish ceremonies, that it is at first difficuh, to trace the resemblance. Not liking to retain the pure worship of the invisible God, they substituted fables in its place, and began to worship the creature instead of their Creator. The Hindoo acknowledges that the shedding of blood, in some cases, is necessary to obtain the favour of their gods. May they soon be led by the Spirit to see and to acknowledge that the blood of Christ, and it alone, can cleanse them from all sin. In reference to the raving of the priestess, I would add, that the opinion of the people is, that it was wholly involuntary, on her part. They say that the god, who resides in the idol, and to whom the sacrifice is presented, leaves the idol, and takes possession of the body of the woman, and, through her, speaks to the people, giving them the information that they need. The Hindoos fully be- lieve, that the god, which is sometimes a demon, does possess individuals. What they do in this state of madness, is considered the work of the god, not of the person thus possessed. That the devil does possess people now, as well as in the days of Christ, the Hindoos and Mussulmen fully believe. They have their own rules, by which they determine whether the case in question be a real devil-posses- sion or not ; and if it be so, according to their judg- ment, the person thus possessed is worshipped, for the time being, as the god himself. 1 can only say. IN INDIA. 323 Parting from Mr Roper. if the woman I saw was not possessed by the devil, when she was thrown into such convulsions, it comes nearer to it than any thing my imagination has ever formed on the subject. They worship the devil in many cases — pray to him, and ask him to take possession of their bodies at the time, (as he will of their souls at last, unless they repent), and who can say that God does not permit their prayers to be answered in this way, as we know He can 1 For one, I should be afraid to give utterance (o such a prayer, lest it should be answered. It is better to pray, "From sin, from the crafts and assaults of the devil — good Lord, deliver us." And may we also pray, "Lord deliver the heathen from the bondage of Satan." Monday, \Oth. This afternoon we parted from Mr Roper and his kind family. The few days we re- mained under tiieir hospitable roof, endeared them much to us, and our grateful hearts lead us to pray, " The Lord reward them for the kindness they have shown us." A Missionaiy, who has been for weeks tossed about among a heathen people, and has met wJh no sympathy from them, while engaged in his wearisome labours for their good, knows well, and, perhaps, no one knows better, how to prize the kind- ness and the sympathies of Christian friends, with which he may be favoured. It becomes him not to forget the Author of all his comforts, nor those by whose hands they may be dispensed. Mr Roper kindly accompanied us as far as the village of Wa- 324 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Waloonjee. loonjee, about ten miles from Aurungabad, where we parted. WALOONJEE. This village contains about four hundred houses, according to " Clure's Itinerary," but as we had sent our luggage and books ahead, and it was near night, we did not enter it. For aught we know, none of the people have ever heard of the name of Jesus, as the Saviour for sinners. As we passed the village, we observed that the people were engaged in celebrating the memory, perhaps, of some man, or, more likely, of some one of their numerous gods. It was done by the firing of guns, and by making a noise in other ways. The similarity between this mode of " keeping the day" and that practised by some Chrislian people in celebrating the birth of some great man, or the me- mory of some great event, struck us with peculiar force. It is difficult to imagine how the burning of gunpowder, or the noise, whether of I he ciacking of the humble squibs, or the majestic roaring of the mighty cannon, can deepen the impression in the mind of a nation, of the worth of an individual, or of the value of any great and praiseworthy achieve- ment. Yet such are the means made use of, in many cases, by a Christian people, as well as by the heathen, in their celebrations. The Roman Catho- lics in Bombay celebrate the birth of our Saviour by IN INDIA. 325 Similarity of heathen and Christian customs. the firing of cannon. And the people of the United States of America celebrate the day of their Inde- pendence in a similar manner. As Americans, we can say that we have heathen example, at least,, though we may lack Scripture authority for such a course. DU-HEE-GAON. Leaving Wa-loon-jee, we came to the village of Du-hee-gaon. A Hindoo, carrying a lantern, show- ed us the way. Here we stopped all night, in an old and forsaken chowdey, not half as good as a common stable. By wrapping ourselves up, head and all, in ouv blankets, we made out to escape the ill effects of being exposed to the night air. By a little attention on the part of I he Patel of the village, these chowdeys might be made very comfortable for travellers, but no one seems to think of such a thing, unless he should be paid for it, and no one has pub- lic spirit enough to repair them without pecuniary compensation. It is astonishing to see how far the present generation of Hindoos have sunk below their fathers in this respect. Their chowdeys, their temp'es, and their tanks, all share a like neglect. The wall of a tank is broken down, for instance, and every year the rains wash into it a large amount of clay, thus diminishing its capacity to hold the usual amount of water, and, of course, lessening the supply of the people for the year to come. The ill 2c MISSIONARY JOURNAL Lack of public spirit among the Hindoos. Toka. effects of this are seen in the dead and dying cat- tle; in the parched gardens, and in the starving peo- ple, in many cases; and yet, foreseeing all these things, no one stands forth to repair these breaches, merely because he may not receive a pecuniary re- ward for his labours, though he would thereby be adding to his own future comfort, and that of his family and neighbours. TOKA. Tuesday, 11 /A. We left Du-he-gaon this morn- ing, at four o'clock, end came to Toka. We made our stopping place in the small village of Singum, at the junction of the Para and Godavery rivers. By crossing the river Gcdavery, you enter the village of Ga'e-gaon ; Toka stands on the opposite side of the Para. We visited these villages to-day, and distributed one box of books and tracts among the people. The people here were very civil, and seemed glad to receive the books w^e gave them. During the forenoon, the people came over the rivers in crowds to us, with whom we conversed till we were all weary with talking, but still they did not seem to be satisfied. After dinner, we visited the villages, to converse with those who are of high standing among their people, in a more private manner, and also, to pro- claim the name and religion of Jesus to the people in their own temples. IN INDIA. 327 Preachiag in the temple of Sheve. We entered the temple of Sheve, in Toka, where we soon had a crowd around us. Tlie body of the temple and the verandahs were filled with people, who seemed to be all eagerness to receive tracts, and to hear us converse about this new religion^ as some of them called it. Nothing of any special interest took place during the time we were with them. Orie man, however, seemed to be a little annoyed at our conversing so much about Jesus Christ, and urg- ing tlie people to forsake their idolatrous worship with so much earnestness. He was asked, "What is sin?" He replied, "Sin is to forsake the religion in which a man has been educated." A larger proportion of the people here can read than in most of the villages through which we have passed. There are several schools for boys, but none, of course, for females. The temple of Sheve is a fine specimen of Hin- doo architecture. The figures and carvings in this temple are, in many respects, similar to what we saw in the caves of Ellora. The temple is some- thing in the gothic style ; the resemblaiice, however, is not very striking. The Hindoo order of architec- ture is mi generis. The pillars in the teiYiples are, generally speaking, light, and full of minute figures. The village of Toka is considered by the Hindoos a sacred place. It not only stands upon the bank of the sacred river Godavery, but it also stands at the junction of this river with the Para, which in- creases the sacredness and soul-cleansing virtue of 328 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Peculiar sacredness of the Godavery at Toka. the waters to such a degree, that the sin of cominit- ting the two greatest crimes among the Hindoos, viz., killing a cow and a Brahmun, may be atoned for, by performing certain ceremonies, accompanied with bathing at the junction of these sacred streams. In consequence of the sacredness of this place, the Brahmuns have collected here, and form, by far, the largest proportion of the inhabitants. They love to be near what are called holy places, but as to real holiness, they know nothing about it. We hope that the word spoken to them to-day, and the many tracts distributed, may convince them, that the waters of the Godavery and the Para cannot take away sin. " No bleeding bird, nor bleeding beast, No hyssop branch, nor sprinkling priest, No running brook, nor flood, nor sea Can take the dismal stain away. Jesus, my God, thy blood alone Has power sufficient to atone : Thy blood can make me white as snow, No Hindoo rite can cleanse me so." Just before the chowdey we occupied, a company of traveling gypsies had encamped for the day. The business of this company is to make little clay ornaments, consisting of the representations of birds, dogs, &c. Having fashioned them according to their fancies, they are placed in the sun to dry. They tire afterwards painted and sold. This company had two jack asses with them, which carried their IN INDIA. 329 Gypsies. Their mode of living. house, household furnituie, all the tools,^ &c., neces- sary to cany on their trade, and their children be- sides. Their house consisted of a few pieces of matting, which were, with the aid of a few light poles, so managed as to make a pretty good shelter fi'ora the sun. A mat, spread on the ground, served them for a bed. Each person had a thin cloth wrapped around the body, which answers ihe double purpose of a dress by day, and a coverlet by night. The chfldren, being naked through the day, come in for a share of their parents' covering at night. A vessel to cook in, one to eat out of, and a thiid used for a drinking cup, answered their purposes. The ground was their table, and their hands and fingers served them for knives and forks. In travelling, the adults walk, and the children, placed in a wallet, are hung over the back of the ass, while a third one, at times, is placed between them, on the back of the animal. They all appeared, to-day, quite cheerful. The men were engaged in working, and in selling their wares; the females iii cooking, and the children in playing and tumbling about in the dirt. I never was so much convinced as to-day of the advantage of having but little of this world's goods ; and that tlie real necessaries of life are, indeed, ex- ceedingly few. Three vessels for a whole family ! Neither knife, fork, spoon, chair, stool, table, bed, nor any such cumbersome things as cups, and sau- cers, and plates, are to be found in this family. If 2 c* 330 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The real wants of life are few. Hewra. this be not simplicity in living and in dress, I know not what is. True it is, that " Man wants but little, nor that little long." One of the greatest comforts in travelling in India, (and, I may add, also, through life) is to have but little to carry v^^ith you. It will free you from a world of care and anxiety. The people of Hindoosthan, generally, and these gypsies especially, seem to un- derstand this to perfection. As there was no one of this company able to read, we could only tell them of a better way than the one they have chosen, and left them. Poor creatures! their whole lives are spent in going from place to place, merely to procure for themselves and their children enough to eaX — then die and be forgotten. "Like brutes they live, like brutes they die." HEWRA. Wednesday, I2th. We left Toka this morning be- fore sunrise, and came to Hewra for breakfast, about ten miles. The town has been much reduced of late years. A fort stands near the town, but it is fast going to ruin. We spent the day in this place, and had considerable conversation with some of the people. A number of people assembled in the chowdey where we put up, to converse with us. All these paid good attention to what we said, ex- cepting two persons ; the one of these laid himself do wn IN INDIA. 331 Khurownda. on the ground, as if in contempt of, or at least, to show his indifference to the subject on which we were speaking. The other attempted to interrupt us by abruptly proposing unmeaning and imperti- nent questions. We distributed a few tracts among them. Tracts in the Balbad character were the only kind we had left, and these the most of the readers could not understand. All who applied to us and could read, we supplied. A large proportion of the inhabitants are Mohammedans. In the evening we came to the village of Khu- rown-da, about seven and a half miles distant from Hewra. When we came to the chowdey, we found it occupied by a number of native travellers, who had their fires made, and their pots of rice on the fire boiling. The Patel of the village provided them with another place, and thus gave us the sole pos- session of the ciiowdey for the night, without being incommoded by a lot of noisy travellers. Wiiile our cook was preparing tea for us, we took a short walk out of the viUage, and, sitting down upon a rock, we conversed together on the state of the heathen, and our work. Though weary in body, we were clieered by the promises that this world shall yet be redeemed, and also with the fact that God has been pleased to use us as instruments in His hand of advancing His cause among this benighted people. On our return, we found a number of people in and about the chowdey, waiting to converse with 332 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Interesting interview with a native. US. While Mr Read was engaged in conversing with those without, I was engaged with those in the chowdey. Two of those with whom I conversed were the iriost seriously disposed Hindoos that I have met with on this tour. They were both about thirty-five years of age, respectable in their appear- ance, and very polite in tlieir whole deportment. After explaining to them distinctly the plan of sal- vation through our Lord Jesus Christ, and contrast- ing it with the Hindoo system, I asked one of them, JMiss. What do you think of the plan of salvation by Jesus Christ? Hindoo I think it is good. J\Iiss. How long have you worshi/iped idols'? Hind. From my childhood. J\fiss. And have you derived any benefit from the worship of idols ? Hind. (Shaking his head and with a solemn coun- tenance) No: nothing. JVIiss. What, then, is the use of continuing to wor- ship them 1 Hind. None at all. Miss. Is it not time, then, to try something bet- ter — even the religion of Christ? Hind. It would be well, for idols are vain. I was rather surprised to find this man so very candid, and, withal, so honest in the matter. The subject most evidently was new to him, and the truth of the Gospel commended itself to his con- science. After some further conversation with him, IN INDIA. 333 Testament left for a village. An unaccommodating Jageerdar. the last copy of the New Testament which we had with us, was put into his hands. We tohl him and all present that (he book contains a revelation of the will of God — that it makes known the only true way to obtain the favour of God and eternal happi- ness, and that we entrusted the book in his hands for the benefit of himself and the people of the vil- lage. He received it with gladness, and promised that he would not only read it himself, privately, but would also read it publicly to others. From the man's whole conduct we have strong hopes to think that he w^ill do as he has promised. May the bless- ing of God attend the reading of this copy of His word, so that many of those villagers may be brought to a saving knowledge of the truth. WAMBOOREE. Thursday, \Sth. We leftKhu-rown-da this morn- ing early for Wambooree, which we reached at nine o'clock. After some delay in searching for a place, we found a chowdey occupied by a Jageerdar.* He refused to let us have the use of it. After searching in vain for another place, we told him that v^e must have it, and proceeded immediately to occupy it. He loudly opposed, and finally went away angry. * A Jageer is a division of country, or a certain number of villages, granted by the government to an individual, for the raising and maintaining a quota of troops. A Jageerdar is the person who holds this grant. 334 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Temple of Bhiroba. Shortly after this, his brother came, and made an apolog-y for him, and told us we were at liberty to occupy the house during our stay in the village. We spent the day in this village, and distributed among the people the remainder of our tracts. Se- veral boys showed us tracts, which they had received about a year ago, from the Missionaries who visited this place. One boy was asked, "What does the tract speak of ? " He replied, " About Jesus Christ."* He answered many questions which were proposed to him, with considerable accuracy, which showed that he liad read (he tract with attention. We sup- plied him with more, and left a number in the chow- dey, for the benefit of those who might see proper to read them. We visited the temple in this village dedicated to Pashun-nath and Bhiroba. It contains several im- ages of while marble, very neatly sculptured. The images are in a sitting posture. Their long ears hanging down upon their shoulders, and their fin- gers all of equal length, show that they are images of the Boodd,hist order. But that is a matter of no consequence to these Hindoos, as they are well * It is pleasing to know that boys in India, as a general thing, take good care of the books that may be given them. I have found tracts in the hands of many of those who were formerly in connection with the Mission schools, which had been preserv- ed carefully for fifteen years. It is an encouraging thing to know that the tracts you distribute will, generally, be preserved, and not destroyed. IN INDIA. 335 Conversations with the natives. made, and to worship these will save the expense of procuring others, which are made after the Hindoo order. The temple is a neat and strongly biiilt building, and is adorned with many paintings, re- presenting the exploits of their gods. Among these paintings, we discovered Krishnoo among the Go- pees, and Hunooman with his army of monkeys, contending against Rawun, and his host of demons. Having preached the Gospel to the people in this temple, we went to another. Theobject of worship in this temple, was noticing but a large stone, taper- ed to a point. A conversation was begun with a by-stander, in refeience to the idol. JVJiss. What is this ? (pointing to the stone.) Hindoo. The god Bhiroba.* Miss. No ; it is a stone. Hind. (Pointing to a stone) That is a stone; but this is god (pointing to the idol). j[Iiss. They are both stones. The one has red paint on it, and the other has not. That is the only difference we can perceive. Does that stone (point- ing to the idol) drink water and eat rice? Hind. Yes; every day.f * Bhiroba is a particular form of the god Sheve. t The priests place rice and vt^ater before the idol every day, and make the people believe that the idol consumes all that is given it. The history of Bel and of the Dragon, affords us another instance of the same mode of deceiving the people. There is no lie too absurd for a Hindoo'sTaith ; indeed, it vi^ould seem, that the more absurd the thing is, the easier they can believe it. 336 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Trial of the power of the god. Jlf/55. You know yon do not tell the truth; and you know very well that it cannot eat, drink, see, hear, or niove. It is a lifeless sione. Hind. Not so. Sahib ; it is alive: it is god. Miss. Very well. If it be God, we cannot injure it; but if it be a stone, it may be broken. Is it not sol No one answered any tiling. I then took a pretty large stone, which I found near at hand, and ap- proaching the idol, asked the man if it would break his god to strike it with the stone 1 held in my hand] He made no reply. I then raised it up under pre- tence of throwing it at the idol, and the man imme- diately exclaimed, "Don't throw it. Sahib ; it is only a stone; it will break." The people immediately burst out into a loud laugh. I then threw down the stone, and asked him, why he had told me a false- hood, and if he was not afiaid that the true God would punish him for the sin of lying, and of deceiv- ing the people. He remained silent, and with the others, listened while we exposed the folly of w^or- shipping a stone, and made known to them the only way of salvation, through the Lord Jesus Christ. . Friday, I4lh. We left Wambooree this morning, for Ahmednuggur, which we reached at eight o'clock, and were rejoiced to meet our brethren Messrs Allen and Boggs, the former of whom has just returned from America, after an absence of about one year. Mr Read will probably remain here for a few days, IN INDIA. 337 Native converts. and then go to Pundurpoor with Mr Allen, before the rains commence. AHMEDNUGGUR. Sabbath, 16th. The ordinance of the Lord's Sup- per was administered to-day, in the house of Mr Boggs, in the native language. One man was re- ceived into the church, upon profession of his faith. After being baptized, he sat down with us at the Lord's table, in company with several other native converts. Three females applied to be received at the same time; but it was judged best to defer their baptism until the Mission should have more time to test their Christian experience. We cannot expect from these converts from paganism, the same degree of know- ledge that we should from a person in a Christian land, before admitting them into the Christian church. It is sufficient that they give evidence of a change of heart, and understand the first principles of the Christian religion. There is, no doubt, dan- ger of being too strict, as well as too lax, in the ad- mission of members into the church, from among a people so depbrably ignorant of Gospel truth as the Hindoos are. In this matter much wisdom is ne- cessary to direct the Missionary in his duty. Monday, 1 7th. I left Ahmednuggur this morning for Bombay. As the villages on the way have been visited frequently by Missionaries, and my object 2d SS8 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A devotee performing tup. now was to reach Bombay as soon as possible, I did not delay to converse with the people on tbe way. I reached Ranjangaon lale in the evening, and lodged in the public bungalow. Tuesday i ISth. Came to Seroor, this evening. On my way to this village, I saw a man performing tup, of a pretty tiresome kind. The poor deluded creature held a stick in his hand, of about a foot in length. Starting from his own door, he threw him- self prostrate on the ground, and reaching out his hand, made a mark on the ground. Having risen up, he placed his toes at this mark, and measured his length again ; and so he intended to do, till he should reach the temple before him, which was about a mile and a half distant. When I came up to him, I pointed out to him the folly of his undertaking, and directed him to the Lord Jesus Christ, who was able to take away all his sins. While I was talking to him, he knocked the dust off his clothes, and sat down on the ground, and listened to me with atten- tion. Having passed on about a quarter of a mile, I looked back, and found him preparing to engage anew, in his useless work of measuring^ by repeated prostrations, the distance from his house to the tem- ple, for the sake of saving his soul ! ! Wednesday, I9th. Came to Koon-da-poor, a small, and half-deserted village, for breakfast. The Bun- galow is in the care of a Mussulman from Bengal, a kind and attentive man. I supplied him with Hin- doosthanee tracts, for which he expressed his thank- IN INDIA. 339 Poonah. Scottish missionaries. fulness, and l-eft some tracts with him, for the benefit of others m the village who could read. Game to Lonee in the evening, and conversed with a few individuals, and disposed of some more of my tracts, Thursday, I9th. Reached Poonah this morning and spent the day in the Bungalow. Here our brethren of the Scottish Mission, Messrs Nesbit* and Stevenson, are located. They here have had some success among the natives. They began their Mis- sionary oi>erations in this place about six years ago. There is at present an interesting state of feeling amon-g the European soldiers stationed here. Many of them have become, in the judgment of Christian charity, true converts. Mr Stevenson holds a week- ly meeting in his own house, for tlie benefit of those who may attend. There were about tliirty of them present tiiis evening, Mr Stevenson preached on the subject of Christ's exaltation; which, I doubt not, was interesting to all, as it was to me. Some persons have thought that a Missionary should devote himself exclusively to the native popu- lation : but this is, in our opinion, a mistaken idea. He is bound to do good unto all men as he has op- portunity. The natives, no doubt, demand the greater portion of his time ; but the others are, by * Mr Nesbit has since been compelled to leave the Missionary ■field, in ill health. Mr Stevenson has accepted the appointment of Chaplain of the Scottish kirk in Bombay, in conjunction with the Reverend Mr La urie« 340 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Returning to Bombay. no means, to be neglected. The example of all those who bear the name of Christian, is not with- out its effect upon the heathen population. If it be evil, it will tend to hinder the conversion of the peo- ple to God ; and if it be holy, it will aid greatly in promoting it. Poonah contains now about one hundred thousand inhabitants. The European population may be es- timated at two thousand. Friday, 21 St. Left Poonah this morning before day, intending to stop at Poonoola ; but missing the bungalow, I came on to Wurgaon. When the tat- too-wallas'^ came up, they agreed, for extra pay, to go on to Karlee, a few miles farther. I distributed a few tracts in both of these villages. At a short dis- tance from the village of Karlee are the Karlee caves. I had not time to visit them, nor did I feel much curiosity, having seen those of Elephanta, Salsette and Ellora. Saturday, 22d. Leaving Karlee at an early hour this morning, I descended the ghauts (mountains) before the heat of the sun became great. At the foot of the ghauts I stopped in a small house occu- pied by a Mussulman. At my request his wife made me some unleavened bread. In the mean time he procured for me a seerj; of goat's milk, while his * Literally, pony-feUows, i. e. men who have the charge of a pony or horse, and are engaged in transporting burdens from one place to another.. t A seer is about a pint and a half. IN INDIA. 341 Panwell. Remarks. son fed my horse. I made but a short delay here, and came to Chovvke, where I remained till the evening-, and then came to Panwell. Sabbath, 2Sd. I spent this day in reading, and as my strength would permit, in conversing with the natives. The Gospel is not a new thing in Panwell ; yet still the people seem willing to hear. The Mis- sion have one school in this village. To the scho- lars and the people I gave away all the tracts I had left. Monday, Mth. Reached Bombay this morning, having taken the Bundur boat at one o'clock, and was cheered to find that God had preserved my family from death, though not from sickness, during my absence from them. The Lord's name be praised. Thus, in the good providence of God, am I permitted, after an absence of two months, in which 1 was privileged to travel about five hundred and fifty miles, and preach the Gospel to multitudes who never before heard of Jesus, to return to my family, and to unite with my brethren at this station, in ad- vancing the cause of our Redeemer among this people. CONCLUDING REMARKS. In (he present state of things among the Hindoos, it is highly important that Missionaries should itine- rate as much as possible during the cold season of ihe year. They should go out on these tours after 2 D* 342 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Weapons not necessary for the missionary. the Apostolic style, " two and two," or should be ac- companied by a native preacher. Unless extensive tours are made, multitudes of immortal beings, scat- tered about in small villages, and among the hills, and on the plains of this extended country, must re- main, for ages to come, in the darkness which now envelopes them. Wherever the Missionaiies go among this people, they should go as the messengers of peace. They should speak peaceably to them ; should carry no weapons of defence with them ; but should show to all that they seek their good, and that alone. The fact that Mr Read and myself travelled for two months among the people, and out of the jurisdiction of the English government, without any weapons of defence, and without even any passports, shows that the former are by no means necessary in this field, although the other might be. Witness, for exam- ple, the conduct of the wily Brahmun towards us at Pytun. He dared not openly to hurt us, and when he was found out, his conscious guilt forced him away. The Missionary should endeavour constantly to feel that the people for whose benefit he is labouring, are not only enveloped in gross mental darkness, but that they are also immortal beings, who cannot be saved without the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He should reprove with aflfection, and so exhibit the Gos- pel as to make them feel, if possible, that it is for their good alone he labours among them. This, IN INDIA. 343 Scriptures and schools needed. however, will be a difficult work at first; for the Hindoos think that the Missionary labours only from selfish motives, as they do. They know not, nor will they believe, that the love of Christ constrains him to labour as he does for the salvation of others. They work, as they say, for righteousness, (i. e., something by which to purchase happiness hereafter) and say that the Missionary does so too ; and, of course, do not thank him for his labours of love among them. The Scriptures and tracts ought to be multiplied a hundred fold among the people. Those who can read are not half supplied. Here is a wide field for the distribution of tracts and the Scriptures ; but where are the labourers 1 Schools are of great advantage to the cause, and ought to be encouraged, from the simple fact, that, if the children learn to read, we can operate upon their minds through the medium of tracts. Schools for girls are highly important. They are, perhaps, the only means by which we can, at present, expect to do them much good. As a general thing, the females are inaccessible to the Missionary. If they could read, they might be taught through these si- lent messengers, without the living preacher; but as it is, their case is most deplorable. Ladies can have access to them, and this presents a wide field for such as can enter it. A change is gradually working in the minds of the people. The confidence of many in their own 344 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The advantage of tbe press. The English language. faith is shaken ; but unless they adopt the Christian system, infideUty must prevail. Now is the time to multiply the Scriptures among the people, for ihey not only need them, but are willing to receive them. The press in India should be made more efScient. Tracts of all kinds, doctrinal, practical and contro- versial*, should be issued in abundance; and also proper school books, and works to improve the morals and elevate the standard of right feeling among the people. The native schools are exceedingly defi- cient as to proper books. All the books which they have among them, (hat are really useful, have been furnished them by Christian people, or Missionaries in the country. Whenever it can be done, the na- tives' schools, should be furnished with Christian books, gratuitously. A wide field for usefulness is now opened, through the medium of the English language. It ought to be improved. The English language is, no doubt, destined to be a powerful instrument in the hand of God in saving India. If good men, and men of general knowledge, should go to India, they could, I doubt not, support themselves by teaching the English language. They might, in this way, be- come most efficient helpers in the work of saving men. Who will go 1 There ought to be many more labourers in the * By controversial tracts, I mean such as tend to expose the absurdities of Hindooism, and to show the superiority of the Chris- tian scriptures, over the Vedes and Poorans, IN INDIA. 345 Missionaries needed. The claims of the heathen. field, so that the great work could be divided among them, and thus enable them to labour wild more ease, and with more success. It is high time that other stations should be occupied, and that there should be Missionaries at this station, especially for the Mohammedan population. Through them the Gospel might be preached throughout all Hindoos- than, and Peisia, and Arabia ; for there are persons here, who travel to and fro into all parts of these coimtries. Thei'e ought to be many more Missiona- ries in this field. Do twelve millions of people de- mand no more than about twelve or fifteen Mission- aries ] Is not the command left with the church to preach the Gospel, or cause it to be preached to every creature under heaven ; and ought not this com- mand to be obeyed ] Is there a young man, who is preparing to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to a dying loorld, who can shut his eyes upon the largest portion of the world, (the heathen part) and say, God ^oes not call me there ? If (he salva- tion of souls be what we seek, does not that field which contains the greatest .amount of people ; who are the most needy, the most wretched, and the most pitiable; who have the least, light, and the least knowledge of the Saviour who died for them, demand our attention rnoie than those parts which are not so needy, nor so wretched 1 Shall we be the depositories of God's blessing to the world, and not pour it forth 1 Shall we rejoice in the grace of God and in the salvation of the Gospel, and yet withhold 346 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Christians bound to spread the gospel. it from six hundred millions of our fellow-men, for whom it was designed as well as for us ] God for- bid. Rather let every one say, Here Lord am I, use me in thy cause, as shall most advance thy glory — and send me^if it be thy will, to the ends of the earth, that some of the heathen, through my instrumentality, may be saved. Christian reader, has God nothing for you to do among the heathen] Search and see ; and may the Lord help us all to know, and cheerfully to do his will, so that the whole family of men may be saved from the power and dominion of the adversary, and be made the freed sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty. Theie are many, no doubt, who ought to devote themselves to the work of Missions, and who, if they did but follow the convictions of their own hearts, and did not consult with flesh and blood, would, ere long, be in the Missionary field. They know that the heathen are perishing, and cannot be saved without the Gospel of Christ ; they know that the command, " Go ye," is imperious, and that a tre- mendous weight of obligation rests on them to carry the Gospel lo the heathen : tliey know that there is not half the need of their labours in a Christian land, where every one may possess a Bible, if he chooses, and where the Sabbath of the Lord is observed, and where there are thousands upon thousands of Chris- tian people to carry on the work of the Lord, that there is in aland where there are no Sabbaths and no bibles, and where the people have no knoioledge of IN INDIA. 347 Excuses for not going to the heathen. the only way of salvation; and yet they say, Send, Lord, by the hand of whom thou wilt, send the Gos- pel to the heathen ; but we pray thee, have us ex- cused ! And what are the grounds upon which they pray to be excused ] One says, he has not piety enough to be a Missionary. It may be the fact; and yet he imagines he has piety enough to preach the Gospel in a Christian land. A man should blush before God to offer such an excuse. Another says, he has no talent for learning a fo- reign language. Has he ever thrown himself among the heathen, with a heart burning with love for their salvation, and in humble and prayerful depen- dence on God, made the attempt? We venture to affirm that there is no man, who is esteemed fit to be in the ministry, who, if he ha\ie health to apply himself, may not, in due time, be able to tell the heathen, in their own language, of the way of salva- tion through the Lord Jesus Christ. Another says, I can be more useful in a Christian, than in a heathen land. This is taking for granted, what should be proved by actual experiment. No minister can say that he may not, and cannot be very useful in a heathen land, until he shall have made the experiment; and for aught he knows, God might make him much more useful in extend- ing the Redeemer's kingdom, by labouring among the heathen than elsewhere. Suppose Paul, the apostle, had made such an objection, what would have become of the church'? 348 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Excuses and answers. I would go to the heathen, says another, but all my friends are opposed to it. What ! all your friends opposed ! Is Jesus opposed to it] Is not His friendship worth naore than that all of our earthly friends, and does He not say, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature/?" Shall we grieve this best, this heavenly friend, by seeking to please earthly ones'? Paul said, "If I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of God." And shall we yield to the wishes of a few- earthly friends to stay at home, while six hundred millions of our fellow-men are perishing in their sins, and calling to us to come and teach them? What do duty and conscience say] Another says, I would go and preach the Gospel to the heathen, if it w^ere not for my children. I would ask, has not that person now a sufficiency of this world's goods to support them; or if he have not and be really desirous of going-, are there not hundreds in the Christian church, who would most gladly support them, and thus relieve his mind of that burden] But would such an objector think it a sufficient excuse for a returned Missionary, and in good health, to say, I w^ould go back to the heathen if it were not for my children] Would he not re- quire him to leave the children of his love, and go, in obedience to the command of Christ] No doubt of it. And why should he bind on the shoulders of another a burden which he himself is unwilling to bear] The same reason that operates on his mind IN INDIA. 349 Excuse, Heathen at home. to urge the Missionary back, amid all the desola- tions and abominations of heathenism, ous^ht to urge him also away from a Christian land, to take his share of the toil of enlightening the dark parts of the earth. The obligation to send the Gospel to the heathen rests upon all, and unless excused by the Great Head of the church, by sickness or other causes from enduring the heat, and the burden of the day in a heathen land, no man, who has the love of God in his heart, has a right to excuse liim- self. Others object, that we have heathen at home, and that they should stay and attempt their conver- sion, and not go into a foreign field. Is it a fact that we have heathen at home ? If so; then vigor- ous efforts should be made to evangeHze them. But are not the claims of twelve millions of heathen peo- ple (I speak now merely of the Mahratta people), who are without God, without hope, without a Sa- viour, without the Sabbath, and nearly without the Bible, and with only twelve or fourteen Missio'naries, infinitely stronger than the claims of fifteen millions of Christian people, with their ten thousand minis- ters, nearly one million of communicants, and all their multiplied means of grace? The fact is, those, as a general thing, who plead for the heathen at home, as an excuse for not aiding those abroad, are seldom found among those who do, in a vigorous and self-denying manner, labour for the salvation of those they call heathen at home. But I deny that 2e S50 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The Christian and heathen contrasted. those in a Christian land, upon whom the hght of the Gospel shines, and who enjoy the Christian Sabbath, are heathen ; nor should they be called such. If they neglect the salvation of the Gospel, they will, undoubtedly, suffer a greater punishiTjent than the heathen : but still they are not heathen people. The heathen are those who acknowledge not the One, only true, and living God, but three hundred cind thirty-three millions of imaginary gods; who worship not Him who is a Spirit, in spirit and in truth, but worship dumb idols, of which they enume- rate thirty-three millions, besides men, cows, mon- keys, tigers, serpents, trees, stones, rivers, yea, and even Satan, and a host of evil spirits besides ; who deny their need of the righteousnessof the Lord Jesus Christ, but trust to their own, by which to obtain future happi- ness ; who know not that Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man, but call upon Ram, and Krishnoo, <^c., in their distress ; who acknow- ledge not the only book which contains the revealed will of God to man, but believe in the Vedes, those cunningly devised fables of crafty Brahmuns ; who believe not in an overruling Providence, which di- rects the affairs of men in righteousness, but in a blind fatality ; who trust not to the atoning blood of the Saviour, and the operation of the Holy Spirit for the pardon of their sins, and the sanctification of their souls, but to vain ablutions, and to the vile practice of eating cow-dung pills, and drinking the water into which a Brahmun has dipped his foot ; who maintain IN INDIA. 351 The contrast continued. What is heathenism ? not truth between man and man, but publicly ad- vocate that, in secular business, lying is absolutely necessary ;. who, finally, believe not in an eternal state of rewards, but that the highest degree of hap- piness consists in the destruction of the body, and the final absorption of the soul into the Deity; or in other words, its complete annihilation. Such is but a mere sketch of heathenism ; and are there any in a Chrisiian land, I ask, who are in such a condition? I think not. But, to know heathenism as it is, a person must first see the heathen — must learn their language — must wade through the filth of their four Vedes and eighteen Poorans — must read and hear the modern popular songs, stories and poem.s — must follow them through their midnight revels — must see them hastening the death of aged parents by chok- ing them with the mud and water of the Ganges — must see the abominable sights constantly presented at the Yatrus (festivals) — must see the mother de- stroy her infant daughter by refusing it proper nour- ishment, or by giving it for food to the monsters of the deep, or to the beasts of the field* — must wit- ness the private murders, the impurity, the lying, the deceit and covetousness which are continually exhibited among the people. When he shall have seen all this, he will have reached the verandah of this temple of abomination, and will have some idea * " In the talook (district) of Drafa, out of a reputed number of four hundred families, there is not one female child in exist- ence." — Hindoo Infanticide, p. 87, 1829. 352 MISSIONARY JOURNAL People in Christian lands not heathen. of the awful iniquity which is within, and will be convinced that, to know Hindooism, with all its soul- polluting and soul-destroying influence, he must be born a Hindoo, and be initiated into all the myste- ries of those polluting rites which characterize the system, and which none but such can know. "Suffice it to say," says one, who had seen much of Hindooism, " that a few scattered passages excepted, in works never read or heard of by the great bulk of the community, that there is not a vestige of real morality in the whole of the Hindoo system ; but in its operation upon the minds of millions, it adds an overwhelming force to the evil influences to which men are exposed, and raises into a horrid flame all the impure and diabolical passions which rage in the human heart." After this view of the subject, will any one still say, that we have at home, in a Christian land, people equally vile and equally de- graded — yea, that we have heathen at home ! Be- lieve it ye who can ; I cannot. There is another objection, which I would not mention, were it not that it has received too much countenance from Christian people, notwithstanding its supreme wickedness. It is simply this : "I would go to the heathen, but my talents are too good — they would he wasted on a people who know not how to esti- mate them^ Permit me to draw a picture from life, and, in the language of another, to say "^m capit ille facit.^^ A young man, when he entered one of our theo- IN INDIA. 353 Excuse, My talents are too good. logical seminaries, and for some time afterwards, spoke much in favour of Foreign Missions, and gave his brethren to understand that he purposed to tread in the footsteps of the great Apostle to the Gentiles, and not, to build upon another man's foundation. At that time he supposed that his talents were only fitted for such a field. But he had not fully learned the meaning of Solon's wise sajang, ivaQi a-iavrov, ("Know thyself)." By the time he purposed to leave that school of the prophets, he found, to the no small amazement of his compeers and himself, that the heathen world did not afford ample scope for the display of the gigantic powers of his expanded and expanding mind. He concluded to stay at home, and illumine the world by his brilliancy of know^- ledge. Here, where many lamps shone with mid- day splendour, he hoped his would add much to the dazzling glare, and, by its superior lustre, would at- tract the admiration of many ; but there, where the midnight gloom of eighteen hundred years had set- tled down upon the people, he feared that they, who loved darkness more than light, could not or would not award him the proper meed of praise. He* feared that the damps of that moral death which covered the land would wholly extinguish his light, and that when death had wrapped him in his man- tle of night, there would be none to arise and say " Behold, a mighty man has fallen !" Fearing this, he resolved to stay at home. We may imagine him, just before the close of his 2e* 354 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Talents too good for the heathen, a mark of ignorance. theological course, sitting alone, and musing thus with himself: "What ! shall 1 who have my mind treasured with knowledge, and its every power in- creased to an amazing extent, waste its rich trea- sures upon the dark minds of six hundred miUions of people, who know not what knowledge is, nor how to prize it if they did know. My hterary stores, my philological skill, my metaphysical acuteness, my oratorical powers, my vast stores of scholastic, polemic and didactic theology, shall all these be exhausted and poured out on skulls so slow to learn or value what is good ! No : it would be burying my Lord's talents in the earth. I must seek another field. Let those who have fewer talents labour there. I will find a field worthy of my talents at home." Such, we have supposed, were the musings of this young man. The term closed, and he has been ushered into the world. He has found one mind, which he is destined to illumine, till death shall release him from this duty, but others are not so easily obtained as he had imagined. The man who thinks that his talents are too good for a heathen land, betrays great ignorance of the work of Missions, and not a little pride of heart. Does it require less talents to convey ideas of the whole Gospel plan of salvation to an unenlightened mind than it does to an enlightened one? Does it require less talents and industry to form the Chris- tian character of a people — to instruct them in reli- gion and science— to learn with accuracy a foreign IN INDIA. 355 The excuse answered. language, so as to translate the word of God into it, and to preach in it with accuracy and fluency, than it does to preach in a man's mother tongue, to a people who have minds to comprehend with ease what he may say? Let the man who thinks so, make the experiment. Were the Mayhews, and Elliot, and Brainerd, and Swartz, and Marty n, and Hall, and Carey, and Ward, and Morrison, and a host of others, sent to the heathen because (heir talents were not good enough to stay at home, and be useful there 1 Was Paul sent to the Gentiles because he was "a good man — of not much intellect — of slender attain- ments, and would do very well for a Missionary, to preach to the heathen]" Was Jesus Christ sent upon a mission to earth, to preach to a set of igno- rant, bigoted, superstitious, and depraved mortals, be- cause His talents and general intelligence were of such an inferior order that He could be very well spared from heaven] That intelligent archangel, who stands near the throne of God, and the extent of whose wisdom, and knowledge, and power, no mortal rnind can know, why was not he sent to save this ruined world? Was it because his talents were too good, and he could not be spared from more im- portant work ? Let those whose talents are too good to go to the heathen, answer, if they can. But — such an excuse! The man who makes it slanders his Saviour, and arraigns the wisdom of his God. God the Father knew that the talent of an arch- angel fell infinitely short of what was required to 356 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The excuse answered. save a world. The talents, the wisdom, and the power of the son of God, were necessary for this work. The apostles were men chosen by Christ for this special work — brought up at the feet of their Master, and being plentifully endued with the spirit of wisdom, of knowledge and of grace, were sent forth to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to the heathen. Did Christ mistake the character of the people, and the kind of men who ought to go forth to the heathen? And can we teach Him wisdom? We regret to find that this absiud and wicked sen- timent has found a place in the bosom of many in the church, and if God should permit them, they would act out their feelings upon this subject. When Israel became proud, and worldly-minded, they thought that nothing was too good for them, and any thing was good enough for the Lord. Hence, if there was a blind, or lame, or torn animal in the flock, they gave it to God, while they reserved the good for themselves. Their own houses were ceiled, while the Lord's house was permitted to lie waste? But did they prosper? No, verily. What saith the Lord to proud and wicked Israel, for this and their other sins ? " Ye are cursed with a curse, for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation." And wherein did they rob God? It was by with- holding from Him the best of the flock, and the best of all they had. And if God cursed the Jews, for withholding from Him the best of the flock, may we not expect that he will curse our Zion, if she IN INDIA. 357 A plan to procure more missionaries. withhold from the heathen the best of her sons'? Yea, has not God done it] See what a waste of talents, and tinae, and energy, is now carried un. Men, whose praise might be in all (he churche?, and who might be pointing the millions of heathen in onr world to the Lamb of Ood, are wasting their energies in contending against one anothei*. They are "doting about (ihat is, having an excessive and vicious fondness for,) questions and strifes of words, whereof^ cometh envy, strife, railings, evil sur- misings." "Foolish and unlearned questions avoid," saith the Apostle, "knowing that they do gender strifes." But is this done 1 The displeasure of God is upon the churches because she has not done her duty to the heathen. She has, I fear, by her erro- neous views of Missions, and by her lack of the pro- per spirit, kept many from the work of the Lord in the foreign field. Let the Church arise to the work, and send to the heathen many of her best men, and the Lord will reward her. Oh, ye champions of the truth ! ye contenders for the faith ! a population of six hundred millions of hea- then calls for your aid. Arise, and contend. Victory is sure, and the reward glorious. In carrying on the great work of Missions, there is something, it appears to me, defective. The con- tinual call is for men, but the men are not to be found. How the defect may be remedied, has oc- cupied the thoughts and piayers of many. Plans, too, and suggestions have been made, but still the 358 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A plan for obtaining missionaries. great defect remains. The defect I allude to, is the want of some plan by which to obtain men — suitable men for the Work. If money be wanted for a particular cause, it can be got. How? By sending forth proper men, as agents, to tell the churches of their duly to give to that cause; and the people will give. But how are these agents to be obtained? The societies or ecclesiastical bodies, which have the conducting of the various Missions under their care, do not wait till suitable men pro- pose themselves for the woik. No; they select the men, and invite them to engage in the work, pro- mising them all suitable aid and encouragement, and support in their work. There are, no doubt, many now engaged as efficient and faithful agents for different societies, who never thought of being (bus employed, until they were officially called to the work. And even if they had thought of it, their good sense and modesty would not have permitted them to give up the labours they might be engaged in, to propose themselves as agents for this, or that society. Again, if a college or a theological seminary be in need of a professor, do the trustees of the institution wait till some man, who may be qualified, shall pro- pose himself for the vacancy? No, verily; they select a man whom they judge will answer, and in- vite him to accept the professorship. The fact that he is invited to that work, brings it fully before his •mind and leads him to decide. If they did not pur- IN INDIA. 359 The subject continued. sue such a course, what would be the condition of our institutions'? So it is with a congregation. They invite some man to become tlieir pastor, and he accepts their invitation. Do we blame that congregation for doing so 1 Certainly not ; but we should blame them for not inviting some one, as soon as practicable, to become their pastor. In this, as in other things, congregations and societies have hit upon the proper course to be pursued. Now, it is marvellously strange, that while the church shows so much wisdom in many of her plans, that she should fail in this one, of procuring men for the work of Missions. The church may educate young men, and introduce them by scores into the minis- try, and yet if these should be left afterwards to choose their field of labour, the heathen, I fear, will still be left destitute. She must do something more than merely educate men for the work of the Lord — in Christian and heathen lands, she must call them to it. The plan, then, we would have the church adopt, for procuring the number of Missionaries she needs, is the same that she adopts in carrying on her other operations, viz. to call men to the work. Let the American, the Western, the Baptist, the Dutch Reformed, or any other Board for conducting Missions, select the men they believe would answer — let them call these men, whether married, settled or not — let them request the individuals thus called to decide in the fear of God, whether they will ac- cept the invitation or not. What would be the 360 MISSIONARY JOURNAL The subject continued. effect of such a course? Il would be glorious for the church and for the world. It would, no doubt, bring many into the Mission- ary field, who think now that they have no special call to the work. As the duty of carrying or send^ ing the Gospel to the heathen devolves on the church as a body, we can easily shift off our duty on to the shoulders of others. Some plan is needed, which will bring the duty home to each one personally, and this, we think, would do it. Moreover, men of experience and knowledge, as well as piety, are needed in the Missionary field ; and why should not the church select some of her best men — men who have been tried, and who "have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" at home, and send them abroad to the heathen. If this plan were adopted, our Missionary ranks would soon be filled; and the church at home could, if we judge from speeches made on anniversary occasions, easily spare some of her ministers. The thought is thrown out with the hope that it may lead the church to think of the plan. What other excuses may be offered for not engag- ing personally in the work of evangelizing the hea- then world, each one may know, by asking himself, why do not / go 1 It is the purpose of God to con- vert the world, and that, too, through the instrumen- tality of His church. He has given the command, "Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations." Go; tell them of the only Mediator, and of the only way to IN INDIA. 361 The duty of the church. escape from the wrath to come. Cany to them the bread of life, of which you have an abundance, and to spare — of which they are destitute, and without which, they must for ever perish. The obhgation to give the heathen the Gospel, rests upon the church, yea, upon every member of it, and God will not ex- cuse any man from doing his part in the great work. What that work is, I pretend not to say. Let each one inquire for himself, "Am I doing all that God requires of me, for the salvation of the world 1 Ought I not to pray more, to give more, to labour more than I do: yea, ought I not to go myself? Is there any difficulty in the way of my telling the heathen, personally, of the Saviour, that might not be overcome, if I only had the disposition and the desire to go?" Ye people of God, laok at this sub- ject. Has Jesus entrusted in your hands the Inmp of hfe for the nations of the earth, and do you rejoice in that light, and yet permit the heathen world to wander on in the dark, and finally sink to wo, be- cause it may cost you some pains to give it to them ? Ye ministers of Jesus, who are placed as watchmen on the walls of Zion, do you feel assured that you occupy the place that God designs you should 1 Do you bring the truth of God's word to bear upon as many different minds as you might, and urge upon them their duty to accept the Gospel, and to give it to others 1 Are you acting the part of a Missionary to those around you 1 Are you sure you ought not to be among the heathen 1 If so, might not the 2f 362 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A word to ministers and Christians. Persecution may be necessary. people of your respeciive charges dispense with your services for many weeks in the year, while you should go and do the work of an evangelist among the more destitute, and those who have but little disposition to wait upon God in His house 1 Private Christians in the Apostles' days, did not think that the great work of the Apostles was to feed them. When the church of Jerusalem was scattered abroad, ''"they went everywhere, preaching the word." Christians may neglect their duty to their fellow- men at home, and the heathen abroad, so long, that God may find it necessary, by the aim of persecu- tion, to scatter them abroad, so that they may fulfil their duty in this respect. They may then be glad to escape with their lives to the heathen, and tell them of Jesus. Persecution sent the Gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. Persecution brought the Gospel to America — and if Christian people neglect their duty to the heathen much longer, have we not reason to fear that God will compel them, by the persecutor's and oppressor's arm, to do what the love of Christ alone should constrain them to do. One year's persecution would then do more to furnish the world with the light of the Gos- pel, than can be done now in ten years, according to the present standard of Christian benevolence. Min- isters and Christians should think of this. What hcts been, may be. Ye commissioned heralds of the cross, who sit still with your commissions in your hands, waiting for a IN INDIA. 363 To candidates for the ministry. congregation ; and ye who have turned to merchan- dize, or to farming, or to teaching the rudiments of science, hear the call of six hundred millions, who say. Come over and help us. Arise ! go, thrust in your sickles, for the fields are already ripe unto the harvest. The command is, " go" to them, and not " wait (ill they come to you." Candidates for the Gospel ministry, lift up your eyes, and look at the field — the world. See how much of it yet lies waste. Nearly all the labourers have crowded into a corner of this field. Each hav- ing chosen for himself some little spot, which he calls his own, has walled it round, like some Dek- hunee village, to secure it from the touch of those without, and to keep it for himself; and while his eye is fixed upon that little spot, he seems to lose sight of the wide-spread desolation beyond his little circle, or is satisfied that that field must be cultivated by other hands. We blame them not for pursuing such a course, but would ask, is it the best plan for Ministers to spread the Gospel over the world, by di- recting their united labours so much to the cultiva- tion of one portion of the field 1 Many of them are usefully employed, and cannot leave their fields of labour for any other. There are others who might, but do not choose to do so. If the heathen, then, are to be supplied with the Gospel, j^ou must bear it to them. You have now no attachments, and no connections arising from the relation of pastors to people, to breakup; but, on the contrary, are free 364 MISSIONARY JOURNAL Conclusion. to select a field where you can live and labour for God. Look, then, at the heathen world ; and while you fully believe that they must perish, unless they have the Gospel, and that you can carry it to them, will you not do it] In conclusion, I would remark, that the time has come when the people of the Lord should arise and take possession of the whole earth, in the name of their Divine Master, and for Him alone. Ethiopia is stretching forth her hands for help — the gates of China are gradually opening — the islands of the sea are turning to the Lord — the great river Euphrates is drying up — India and Burmah have received some rays of divine light, and ask for more — Persia and Arabia, if not now, will soon be ready to welcome the Gospel. Thibet and Tartary — who will go and see whether they will receive the Gospel or not? Thus the world is ripe for the harvest. But oh ! where are the labourers ? Pray ye the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth labourers into His harvest, so that the world may be gathered into the granary of the Lord. IN INDIA. 365 A call from the heathen. A CALL FROM THE HEATHEN. The voice of millions! hear the cry — .Haste ! haste, to help us, or we die ; For more than eighteen centuries past We've called — and must our misery last? Our light is out — the deepest gloom Obscures our passage to the tomb ; And none among us now can show The way of peace — the way from wo. Our priests are blind, and we, as they, Wandering from God, have lost our way ; These guides we've followed long — but all Who follow them, must with them fall. To gods of wood, and stone, and clay. We've bowed and prayed by night and day: We've fasted long, and journeyed far. To fall beneath Sooboodra's* car. How cheerfully our flesh we've torn ! And oh ! what cruel tortures borne; What Suttees, too, we've burned with fire ! What thousands, yearly, chose the pyre ! To desperation agonized. Our little babes we've sacrificed ! But seas of blood poured forth, we find, Calm not the anguish of the mind. * Sooboodra is the sister of Juggiirnaut, and is generally placed on the same car with him . 366 MISSIONARY JOURNAL A call from the heathen. Nature's dim light and reason fail — A Gooroo's* wisdom can't avail To guide or tell us where to go To 'scape from inward — endless wo. Behind, before, above, below, The darkness does but darker grow ; Perplexed — distressed — despairing too. Dying, we cry, " What shall we do?" Upon life's utmost verge we stand ; " Go on" — How dreadful the command ! We go — but whither, none can tell — To Swurg,f perhaps — perhaps to hell '. For light we supplicate — we cry ! Have mercy on us, or we die ; Show us the way, if known to you — Is there a Saviour ? — Tell us. who ! AN ANSWER TO THE CALL. BY W. B. TAPPAN. People that sit in darkness, we of light Do humbly Christendom's neglect confess Of her dear Lord's last message, and we bless Jesus, who spares, nor frowns us into night, For this our sin, as righteously he might. * A Gooroo is a spiritual guide. Every Hindoo has one . t Siotirg is the heaven or paradise of Indru. It is one of the places in which mortals receive the reward of their virtuous actions. IN INDIA. 367 An answer to the call. We hear, at length, your lamentable cry, And the Church rises to your help. She arms Her young men. — Look ! the kindling eye That brightens at the note of war's alarms — The sinewy souls for whom stern toil hath charms- The eager tread of those that go to die — Tell of the men, who, counting earth but dross, For you, will gladly yield their latest sigh. So God have glory — Hell have utter loss. THE END. DATE DUE ..^-.-— ^ ■4^96 -«^. i^ML4r uT 1990 'Mtm IfiHIM^ Ip^l^^ ^mW .$) GAYLORO PRINTEDINU.S.A