minds receive a right impulse; and an opening is made, under the blessing of God, for those principles of piety, which may be their guard and their ornament through their future lives."

And while our Servants are eager to assist in this great cause, who will decline their proffered aid? At Bristol a servant was observed to put into the plate what must have been the tythe of her yearly wages; and a labouring boy at Ipswich begged the person who provided his food not to purchase any meat for a week, as he was determined to give the value of his meat to help the poor African Children!

Prudence and caution should, indeed, always be observed in soliciting or accepting such alms: yet he must be dead to the best feelings and interests of these classes of Society, who will not gladly embrace every proper occasion of associating them with himself, according to their means, in the exercise of the noblest charities of the heart of man. It is more blessed to give than to receive. Let him, therefore, who has no support but from his own honest industry, labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.

The poor indeed, properly so called, who are themselves the objects of charitable assistance, ought never to be solicited to contribute; but there is a "numerous and important body of persons," as has been

well observed, "who cannot indeed subscribe their guinea a year, but who are as able as they are willing to take some share, proportioned to their means, in the holy efforts of Christian Love, there is no reason why the humbler orders of society should not partake in our labours, and share our triumph. We have no right to monopolize the commerce of benevolence. There may be as much real charity in the breast of the labourer, as of the scholar or merchant, to which justice has hitherto never been done. By inviting them, therefore, to subscribe their smaller sums, you present to them a noble stimulus for their endeavours; you promote a higher tone of general morals; you raise them to a participation in all the good that is now on foot in the nation; you find a suitable object for the activity of their minds; whilst, at the same time, you are so far from injuring them by allowing them to make those voluntary contributions, that you induce a habit of economy, which, so far as they are concerned, is of itself a handmaid to almost every other virtue."

These are the indications of a deep interest in the success of Missions which revive the spirits of your Committee and strengthen their confidence in God. As the time appointed in his infinite wisdom for gladdening the nations with his Divine Word approaches, we may expect to see the corresponding openings of his Providence; and these will be met by the willing hearts and liberal hands of his faithful

The progress of the Society has been unusually rapid it has been like the sudden start of youth into manhood. Its average income for the preceding thirteen years since its formation, did not reach £.2000 per annum; that of its thirteenth year was little more than £.3000; but the income of its fourteenth year is between £.11,000 and £.12,000.

But your Committee congratulate the Society that they are likely to find suitable opportunities of applying this increase of funds to those great purposes for which they are raised. The opportunities for exertions keep pace with the means of making those exertions.

INDIA.

Your Committee, will on this occasion begin with India: for, to India, the Society has ever looked as the most promising and extensive field of labour.

The Corresponding Committee at Calcutta was authorized to draw annually for the sum of £.250 to be appropriated principally to the support of Public Readers of the Scriptures in the different towns of India. A good beginning has been made in this work but the support of the School Establishments of the venerable Dr. John, Senior of the Royal Danish Mission at Tranquebar, appeared to

the Corresponding Committee so highly important, that they devoted a part of the fund to this object.

The Rev. Mr. Thomason writes:

"We have been induced to apply part of your contribution to the support of Free Schools on the Coast. The venerable and pious Dr. John had often mentioned his want of funds for the accomplishment of his plans amongst the Tamul Christians. The enclosed is an extract of a letter from that Minister, written in November last. The earnest application was thought a sufficient call from Providence, to justify an immediate supply. We therefore voted him the sum of one hundred rupees per month for the support of his School. Establishments of this nature are so immediately within the scope of your Society's labours, that we could not but rejoice in being able at once to gratify his heart by a speedy compliance with his wishes, and to promote the grand object of your Associa tion in the most essential manner. I communicated this resolution to that honoured labourer in time for him to receive the glad tidings by Christmas-Day. This is always a joyful time with the Tamul Christians; and would be kept with peculiar joy and thankfulness on receiving the unexpected intelligence of this donation. The Rev. Mr. Thomson, Chaplain at Madras, has the immediate superintendance of this charity: he is near Dr. John, and will watch over the expenditure of the money. From him, as well as from Dr. John, I expect to receive accounts of their progress from time to time; which accounts shall be forwarded to you, as they arrive, by the they arrive, by the very first opportunity. It appears to me that the true line of labour is precisely that which Dr. John has pointed out to us. In the sphere of Native Christians we have great scope for our exertion. And we can no where labour with such a good prospect of success,"

The Letter of Dr. John, to which Mr. Thomason

refers, dated Tranquebar, Nov. 6th, 1812, is as follows:

"I do not know whether the late Mr. Brown communicated to you my Pamphlet on Indian Civilization,' in which I recommended Free-Reading Schools, so often wished for by English authors. But all remained only Pia desideria. I made, therefore, near three years ago, a trial amongst the Tamul on my own risk; but, observing, on the distribution of the Holy Scriptures, that but a small part of those who desired the Bibles could read in a tolerable manner, I took them back, and gave first only smaller books, with the promise, that, if they could read them with less stammering, they should get larger portions.

"I soon began to feel anxiety how I should continue this charitable institution, seeing that the little fund appointed was exhausted, and I received only thirty pagodas from private benefactors, which was little more than the support for a month. I was obliged, in consequence, to send away one of the European Seminarists to his relations, whom I had intended to educate for the Mission, and in particular for the Free-School-Institution. Some more reductions I have delayed till next January, in order not to grow too soon weary in well-doing, but wait if God Almighty will not open another spring to nourish my already-begun Moral Nursery.

:

"I entered on this design encouraged by the 25th Psalm and have the satisfaction to see, that my trust in God has not been quite put to shame; but observe joyfully, that, by means of these Free-Schools, a great number of Psalms in Tamul and English, and of Solomon's Proverbs and Ecclesiasticus, and of the Four Gospels in Tamul, and New Testament in English, and a still greater number of Extracts of the Bible in Tamul, have been introduced among the Protestant, Roman Catholic, and