to cope with, but sometimes to surpass even week-day scholars in application and successtul exertion. Nor will the instruction they receive be always confined to themselves, but what they have learned will be communicated to others; their infant brothers and sisters will, in turn, become their pupils at home, and not unfrequently the parents themselves derive the first rudiments of knowledge from their offspring; the fact of a child instructing his father in the lessons he had learned at a Sunday school, is too important to be omitted, and shews most strongly that the influence of Sunday school education extends beyond the day on which it is administered, and without the walls of the institution. "As the instructors generally act gratuitously, a mutual feeling of interest will naturally be excited; the teachers, on the one hand, considering it as their duty not only to attend to the education of the children on Sunday, but likewise to their morals and conduct during the week (a superintendance which their local situation and individual knowledge will readily admit of), they will assist them on their entrance into and progress through life, considering it as their duty to befriend them in circumstances of distress, sickness, and affliction. "The children, on the other hand, will look up to their teachers with almost filial fondness; their growing years will enable them to appreciate the motives which induced their superiors in lite to give up their time, gratuitously, to the arduous task of instruction, for their advantage; and the man will contemplate with affection and reverence, the individuals or descendants of those whose kindness instructed his intancy and gave a true value to his riper years. "Such are a few of the many advantages obviously resulting from Sunday school education; the conviction of the vital importance of this object has given rise to the Hibernian Sunday School Society, which has been formed for the purpose of extending and giving efficacy to the establishment and the conducting of Sunday schools in Ireland, a measure, it is trusted, the necessity of which will be sufficiently felt to gain it very extensive patronage and support. "The object of this society is to promote the establishment and facilitate the conducting of Sunday schools in Ireland. "The society proposes to accomplish the object of their institution, by procuring and disseminating the most approved plans of conducting Sunday schools, by supplying them with spelling-books and copies of the CHRIST. OBSERV, No. 108. sacred Scriptures, at reduced prices, and by contributing to defray the expences of such schools, where necessary, without however interfering with their internal regulations; and as to religious instruction, confining themselves solely to the sacred Scriptures or extracts therefrom. " This society will receive subscriptions, however small, and a subscription of one guinea annually shall constitute a member, and the subscription of ten pounds at one time shall constitute a member for life. "A committee of fifteen members, resident in Dublin, together with the treasurer and secretaries, shall be appointed to conduct the business of the society. "An annual report of the proceedings of the society, with an account of the state of the funds and a list of the subscribers shall be published." The president of this institution is the Bishop of Kildare; the guardians are the Countesses of Kingston, Meath, Charleville, and Portarlington; Viscountess Powerscourt, Lady Norwood, Mrs. P. Latouche, Mrs. Shaw, Earl of Meath, Count de Salis, T. Parnell, Esq., J. D. La Touche, Esq., and P. La Touche, jun. Esq. Subscriptions are received by the Right Hon. D. La Touche & Co., Dublin; J. D. La Touche, Esq. the secretary, at the Repository, No. 33, Anglesea Street, Dublin, and by Messrs. Puget and Co., Warwick Lane, London. BENGAL MISSION. The twentieth number of the Periodical Accounts of the Baptist Missionary Society has recently appeared. It contains a report of the state of their missions from Jan. 1 to Nov. 22, 1809. The unusual quantity of religious intelligence which has pressed upon us for insertion, and which has swelled this department in some of our former numbers to an extraordinary size, will oblige us to compress what we have to say, under this head, within a small compass. shall have an opportunity, in a future number, of furnishing more copious details. We The whole number of persons baptized, from the commencement of the mission to the end of 1808, appears to be about 150, of whom a large proportion are native Indians. Among these, we perceive, with pleasure, no fewer than ten Brahmins, of whom, though several have gone back, yet two are now engaged in preaching the Gospel. Additions have been made to this list during the year 1809. On the subject of translating the Scriptures into the oriental languages, a statement 5 H 790 Relig. Intell.—Missions of the United Brethren: Greenland. 1. The Bengalee Bible is completed. A third edition of it is printing in folio, to be used in public worship. 2. In the Orissa, the New Testament is printed, and nearly the whole Book of Psalms. The edition consists of 1000 copies. A mission is about to be undertaken in Orissa. 3. In the Telinga, the New Testament is translated, and a beginning made in the Old. 4. In the Kernata, the progress is nearly the same as in the Telinga. 5. The translation and printing of the Guzerattee had been suspended for the pre sent. 6. In the Mahrattah, the four Gospels are nearly printed off. The whole of the New Testament is translated, and a part of the Old. 7. The printing of the New Testament in Hindoosthanee had been suspended after half was completed, but they hoped soon to proceed with it. 8. In the Panjabee, or language of the Seiks, the translation of the New Testament is finished, and the printing begun. 9. In the Sungskrit, the whole of the New Testament is printed off, and as far as the middle of Exodus in the Old. 10. The translation of the Scriptures into the Burman language has been begun by the missionaries. 11. The Chinese translation is in a state of progress; the printing has proceeded as far as the middle of St. Matthew's Gospel. Besides the establishments which the missionaries possess at Serampore and Calcutta, missions have been formed at Cutwa, Goamalty, Miniary, and Saddamahl, in Bengal, at each of which stations the European, who superintends it, is assisted by one or more native preachers; in Boutan; and at Rangoon, in Burmah. The prospect of good at all these places is stated to be promising; but we must defer, till another opportunity, any details on this subject. MISSIONS of the UNITED BRETHREN. (Continued from p. 459.) GREENLAND. "The latest accounts from the settlements of the United Brethren in Greenland, received in Germany, give the following deplorable statement of their present situation, and that of the colony in general. The Missionaries exceedingly regret the loss of the largest of the two ships, sent by the be [DEC. nevolent permission of the English Government to convey supplies to the colonies. The ship lost near Statenhuek, was destined for the southern settlements, to which theirs belong, and they therefore received no assist ance at all. The second misfortune they experienced, was the capture of a Danish provision-ship by an English ship of war; and last year only one small vessel arrived from Norway, the cargo of which was by no means sufficient for the many factories on the coast. The Danish Government had indeed sent express orders to give to the Mis sion settlements of the Brethren a propartionate share of the provisions, but of course it fell far short of their wants. The Missionaries say, that they had not as yet felt the want of the most necessary articles of subsistence, but their stock of flour could not last longer than May, 1810. If before that time no assistance was received, they should in all probability experience great inconve nience. As to fresh victuals, they had not been able to obtain any for a long time, and their stock of wine was so small, that they could not enjoy the Holy Communion often, which was a grief to them. They have neither tobacco, nor powder and shot. The first article is their current coin, without which they can purchase nothing from the natives, and for want of the latter they could get no riepers or partridges, but must see them fly about their dwellings in great numbers with impunity. "As the last ships were fitted out in Norway, Brother Satterup, our agent at Copenhagen, could not avail himself of the circumstance, to send them help. O how fervently do we pray, that the Lord would be graciously pleased to help our dear suffering bretmen, and all the inhabitants of Greenland, by some way, as yet unknown, and incline the hearts of the English, either to let the Danish provision ships pass free, or to send again some assistance to that colony, out of charity. The letter written to them by the Secretary of the Brethren's Society in England had been duly received, and proved very cncouraging to them." "20th. Our host shewed us a path, lead. ing for twenty-five miles through an uninhabited wood, by which we might reach a water-mill, about five miles from Gnadenhuetten; but he warned us never to quit the path, and to take good notice of the marks made upon the trees, some of which shewed the miles. We proceeded therefore with great caution, but after all, lost our way, during the last three miles. By and bye we got to a broad ditch, which being deeper than expected, Brother Cunow and his horse got into great danger. Our horses to stop and feed them; and proceeding afterwards in great uncertainty as to the track, we feared we should be obliged to spend the night in the wood, when all at once, to our inexpressible relief, we heard the noise of the mill, quite close to us; we called for help, and the good people soon appeared with a boat, pointed out a fordable place, and brought us to Mr. Uhrich, the miller's house. He had been formerly a farmer, and member of our congregation at Litiz, and we were sorry not to find him and his wife at home. "We set off from Bethlehem on the 8th of June, at four o'clock in the morning; but fearing to miss the stage passing through Lancaster from Philadelphia to Pittsburg, we were obliged to take the circuitous route by Philadelphia. We left the latter place with the mail on the 9th, and reached Pittsburg on the 15th, being a journey of 360 English miles, in seven days. During the latter part of the journey, lying across the Alleghany mountains, we moved on heavily, and on the 14th were overset, but expeperienced the preservation of God by receiving no harm. During our stay at Pitts-being exceedingly tired, we were obliged burg, Mr. S. a merchant, and friend of Brother Cunow, shewed us much kindness. A lawyer also, who has two daughters in the boarding-school at Bethlehem, came to see us, and expressed the most lively gratitude for the good education they received. He made us spend an evening with his family, by whom we were received with great kindness. Among other friends, who called upon us, was a son of the well-known Mr. Kapp. This man is the leader of a religious party; and about four years ago, brought upwards of an hundred persons of both sexes from Wurtemberg to America, where he bought a large quantity of land, about five miles from Pittsburg, and formed a pleasant settlement on it. It is said, that many clever workmen are among these people, who maintain a very good character throughout the surrounding country. Their rules and mode of life are said to be very strict. They have all things in cominon, but some who have left their society, are now uneasy, and complaining of their property being left behind; the natural inconvenience of such an arrangement. Mr. Kapp appeared to us to be about thirty years old, an enlightened, pious, and sensible man, well versed in the Scriptures. "We were delighted with the situation of Pittsburg, on the conflux of the rivers Alleghany and Monongohelly, and surrounded with pleasant hills. The union of these two rivers forms the Ohio, which is navigable for large vessels, and will render Pittsburg in time a flourishing trading town. "19th. We proceeded with the stage fifteen miles, to Charlestown, where we hoped to neet horses. Herein, however, we were disappointed. A German merchant, Mr. Fetter, at length succeeded in obtaining two on hire, and generously lent us his own for fifty-three miles, as far as Gnadenbuetten. Here the wilderness commences. We found, however, a tolerable night's lodging about twenty-three miles from Charlestown. "We were, however, received by the family with great hospitality, and refreshments were soon provided. On the road towards Gnadenhuetten we met the miller, who was quite overjoyed so unexpectedly to see Brother Cunow. On reaching the plantations of our German Brethren at Gnadenhuetten, we were struck with their pleasant appearance, and surprised Brother Heckenwaelder and his family at their evening meal. He was not a little astonished at our unexpected arrival, gave us a most cordial welcome, and both he and his two daughters did all in their power to entertain us most hospitably. "On the following morning, Brother Miller arrived from Bersaba to bid us wel come. "We spent the 23d at Bersaba, which lies on the opposite bank of the Muskingum, in a pleasant country. The houses of the brethren and sisters are situated in their plantations, which are surrounded with groves, and consequently at a distance from each other, yet so as that each is in view of his neighbour. In the middle of the settlement stands the school-house and chapel, and the dwelling of Brother Mueller. We visited the eleven families of which the congregation consists, in their houses, and were pleased to find them contented and happy. They all speak English, and a few understand German. Most of them came hither with empty hands, and had a hard time of it in the beginning. But they have been uncommonly industrious, and God blessed their labour. They were just now in prospect of a very rich harvest of wheat. "Our first conference was with the committee, after which we spoke with the fathers and mothers of families. "Our visit to Bersaba was very satisfactory, and encouraged us to hope, that here the Lord will establish a living congregation. Two families are expected soon to increase their number. "At Gnadenhuetten the prospect is not so cheering. In the settlement itself, besides brother Heckenwaelder and his family, and brother Peter, who has the care of the shop, the brethren and sisters Demuth and Wunsch, are the only inhabitants. The minister's house adjoining the school-house is uninhabited, and the mill going to decay, no miller having yet been found to occupy it" (To be continued.) VIEW OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS. PORTUGAL. PORTUGAL is at present the theatre which engages the attention of Europe; and there, the war between France and the powers allied to check her usurpations, is still in a state of fearful suspense. Massena, finding that he could make no impression on the English lines, and that, in the confined position which he occupied in front of them, he might be unable both to procure supplies for his army and to obtain reinforcements, adopted the resolution of retiring to a more favourable situation. On the night of the 14th of November, the whole of the French army suddenly quitted its encampment, and two days after reached Santarem, where it took up so formidable a position, that Lord Wellington, who pursued them the next morning, found it inexpedient to risk an attack. The French, it was discovered, had constructed a bridge over the Zezere, by which it was supposed that they intended to retreat into Spain; and a large corps of British troops was accordingly sent across the Tagus, in order to operate on the flank of the retiring enemy. It appeared, however, that Massena's main object in this movement, was to open the way to supplies, and to secure a junction with a body of men under General Dronet, which was advancing from Spain to his succour. Neither of these objects however, we believe, he has as yet effected. In the mean time the generals on both sides appear to proceed with the utmost caution. No engagement of any moment has taken place, and the only advantage which Lord Wellington states to have been obtained over the enemy in his retreat, was the capture of four hundred prisoners, probably stragglers. Down to the 9th of Desember, the opposing armies continued L merely to watch each other's motions; and as the weather was severe, and their respective forces probably pretty equal, the policy of both the generals, it may be conjectured, is to wait not only for a more favourable season for their operations in the field, but for the reinforcements which may be proceeding to join them. A considerable addition would have been made to Lord Wellington's force from this country, before this time, but for the severe southerly winds which have prevailed for the last five or six weeks. And it must be admitted, that among the innumerable advantages of our insular situation, for which we can never be sufficiently thankful, the uncertainty which it produces in our military movements is a very serious disadvantage, especially when we have to contend on the continent, with a power all whose measures may be made the subject of tolerably exact calculation. SWEDEN. Sweden has at length declared war against Great Britain. The reasons given for this measure are merely, that she wished to prove to her friend the French Emperor, that she was calumniated, when it was alleged, that she wished to afford facilities to English commerce, and to favour its troduction into the Continent. The declaration of war appears, on the face of it, to have been reluctantly extorted from the Swedish government. An order has been issued to confiscate all colonial produce and English manufactures which may be found in Sweden. AMERICA-UNITED STATES. In our number for September, p. 391, we stated what appeared to us to be the rela tive situation of this country and the United States, in consequence of a decree issued by Bonaparte, in which he signified his intention of annulling his Berlin and Milan decrees on the 1st of November, 1810, trusting that Great Britain would also revoke her Orders in Council, and would abandon her new principles of maritime law. No sooner was this decree received in America, than a proclamation was issued by the President, declaring that all the peaceful and commercial relations of France with the United States were restored, and that unless Great Britain should, on or before the 1st of February next, rescind her Orders in Coun. cil, the non-intercourse laws, at present suspended, would be in full force with respect to her. What course our government will choose to pursue under these circumstances, cannot be known until the King shall either have recovered from his present indisposition, or a Regent shall be empower ed to exercise the royal functions; and as the time fixed by America will probably have nearly elapsed before either of these events shall take place, the Government of that country will of course feel the necessity of prolonging the time allowed for our decision. SOUTH AMERICA Almost all the Spanish provinces in South America, with the exception of Peru, have concurred in asserting their independ GREAT PARLIAMENTARY PROCEEDINGS. Parliament assembled on the 13th instant, when his Majesty's Ministers stated, that, their hopes of the King's speedy recovery having been disappointed, they thought that it would now be necessary for the two Houses to provide for the due discharge of the kingly functions. Committees were accordingly appointed, to inquire into the circumstances of the king's malady, and to report thereon to the House. Their Report consisted merely of the evidence given by the physicians, which was in substance, that the king was wholly incapacitated at present for the exercise of the royal functions; and that there was much uncertainty as to the duration of his malady; but that the physicians confidently anticipated his ultimate recovery. On the 19th instant the House of Commons took the Report into consideration. Mr. Perceval stated that it was his intention, in the proceedings he should found upon it, to adhere closely to the precedent of 1788; because not only had the course pursued at that period been sanctioned by repeated di ence. In some the revolution has been effected with little or no struggle; in others the contention has been severe. In the province of Buenos Ayres a civil war has broken out, in which a junta, formed at Buenos Ayres, and exercising the supreme authority there, is opposed by the government of Monte Video, who stand up for the rights of the mother country. We cannot regret the emancipation of the South American provinces from the chains which have so long and so oppressively bound them; but we anxiously wish that the revolution might be every where so modified, as that their connection with the mother country might be preserved, and their co-operation in the present great struggle for their common liberty, secured. It was the former tyrannical government of Spain, that was the author of their wrongs and grievances. These should not be visited on Spain, struggling for her foreign independence and domestic freedom. We greatly rejoiced to hear that the new government of the Caraccas had abolished the slave trade. This act sheds a lustre on the proceedings of the revolutionary junta, and we hail it both as a mark of their wisdom and equity, and as an omen of their future prosperity;-for the Divine blessing will accompany it. We trust that all the other provinces will follow so glorious an example. BRITAIN. visions in both Houses of Parliament, but received the express approbation of the King himself, after his recovery; it might therefore be fairly considered as having had the sanction of the whole of the legislature. He therefore moved three Resolutions, of the same tenor with those which the House had adopted in 1788. The first, specifying the fact of the King's incapacity, passed unanimously. The second, which stated the two Houses of Parliament, consisting of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and the Commons, as fairly representing the nation, to have the power of supplying the defici ency, was contested by Sir F. Burdett, who denied to the parliament that power, on the ground that it was not a full, fair, and free representation of the nation. It passed, however, with only the Baronet's dissenting voice. The third resolution signified that it would be proper to proceed in supplying the present deficiency by a Bill, which should pass through the usual stages of discussion in both Houses. Mr. Perceval at the same time put the House in possession of the ulterior views of his majesty's ministers. It |