COTTON-TREE CHAPEL AND SCHOOL-HOUSE, JAMAICA.

THE following account of this station, which is one of the outposts of the Society's Mission at Kingston and to which reference is made in our former publications under the name of Liguanea, has been received from the Rev. John Wooldridge, to whom we are also indebted for the drawing from which the engraving that accompanies it has been copied.

"The Mission premises, called the Cotton-Tree Chapel and School-house, are situated near Shortwood Estate, in the parish of St. Andrew's, Jamaica. The ground on which the building stands was presented to the London Missionary Society, by the Hon. Joseph Gordon, one of the Members of Assembly and Custos Rotulorum of the parish. Not far from this I erected the tent sent out for my use by the Society in the month of January, 1836, and continued to preach under it almost every Sabbath afternoon till June, 1837. Having then obtained, after many months of fruitless endeavour, a piece of land, and made the plan and other arrangements for building, I laid the foundation stone, and on the 26th of December, had the happiness of consecrating the house to the service of God, as a school of instruction and place of worship for the surrounding population. The Rev. Joseph Tinson preached in the morning from Psal. v. 7; and in the afternoon I addressed the people from Luke ii. 10, Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be unto all people.'

"In the month of July following, a church was formed at this station and I administered the Lord's Supper to about 20 persons, the majority of whom had previously been members of churches in the city. The first of the next month was the memorable day of freedom; and just within those palisades we planted. in commemoration of the day, some cocoa-nuts, around one of which intended to be the emblem and memorial of Liberty, we sang a hymn composed for the occasion, in which old and young, all glad and free, united. A Temperance Society was also formed on that day, and several of the enfranchised negroes became members.

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The school at this time includes 140 children, and the congregation assembling on Sabbath-days, is seldom less than 350. Several hopeful instances of conversion have taken place, and the church has increased to 30 members. Within an easy walk there are several large sugar estates, and other properties, and in the surrounding mountains, large plantations of coffee, and there is no place of worship nearer than this for the labourers to attend.

"The steeple, and a small room partitioned off on each side of it, form the residence of the assistant Missionary. From the balcony there is a beautiful view of Kingston Harbour and Port Royal,

"We anticipate the necessity of enlarging the accommodation. In the prospect of this, I purchased lately that ground and the old buildings upon it, forming part of an estate now about to be sold off in small lots to the free settlers, and I hope to be able to make it over to the Society free of cost.

"Thus that noble tree becomes ours, from which it is proposed to name the building Cotton-Tree School and Chapel. This is not, your readers should be aware, the tree that bears the cotton of which garments are made. The latter is a shrub. This bears, however, a large pod which is full of a sort of downy cotton. It grows immensely large, as you see, Sometimes upon the mountains it grows to an amazing height, perhaps 60 feet, without a limb, and then branches off very magnificently, It is used for making canoes, the wood being very light and easily scooped out for the purpose, The negroes used to have a superstitious venera tion for these trees, supposing them to be inhabited by a spirit.

"The other tree at the right hand is a species of the palm; that near the bell I

This was selected by an old negro, who is now a member of the church, to be the tree of liberty, because, as he said, "While hin carry de fruit in him bosom, him wave him arm in the sky."

CHINESE BOARDING SCHOOL AT PINANG.

THE work of education among the Chinese, in connexion with our Ultra Ganges Missions, has of late assumed a more encouraging aspect than it ever before exhibited; and, from present indications, there seems ground to hope that the difficulties by which the most strenuous exertions of our brethren have been so long opposed, especially in Pinang, are now beginning to yield, and that henceforth a steady and gradual advancement will be made in this deeply important branch of labour. We copy the following particulars, in support of these statements, from an account of the Chinese Boarding School at Pinang, furnished by a correspondent of the Singapore Free Press, and published in that journal under date 6th December last, on the accuracy of which implicit reliance may be placed.

themselves in a manner very creditable to you and themselves. They read and pronounced English remarkably well, and it was clear from the readiness with which they appeared to answer in their own language your questions as to the meaning of particular words and sentences, that they understood what they were reading, and had

not merely learnt like parrots to repeat sounds unaccompanied by distinct ideas. The elder boys also displayed a correct knowledge of grammar, an acquaintance with geography, and as far as their exami nation went, a familiarity with Scripture history, and the important lessons which it teaches."

NATIVE FEMALE ORPHAN SCHOOL AT VIZAGAPATAM. THE efforts hitherto made by several of our Missionaries to promote the cause of female education in the East, although exceedingly limited in amount compared with the importance of the object by which they have been called forth, bear a charac ter sufficiently encouraging to afford strong inducements to persevering exertion in the work. A peculiarly interesting view of this extremely important department of the Mission at Vizagapatam, including a recital of some affecting cases calcu lated to show the necessity that existed for its being brought into operation, is comprised in the following passage of a letter from Mrs. Porter, whose benevolent and assiduous labours in connexion with those of Mrs. Gordon, have, notwithstanding the serious obstacles encountered, already it is believed been the means of decided good; and promise to be productive, eventually, of great and lasting benefit to the native community in this part of India. Addressing the Foreign Secretary in the month of July last year, Mrs. Porter observes :Knowing the interest which is generally felt in the present day relative to native female education in India, and particularly among the female branches of some of the families of the Directors, I venture on troubling you with a letter on the subject. In December, 1835, I commenced a Native Female Orphan School, and though at first there were many difficulties to contend with from the prejudices of the people, it has succeeded beyond our expectation. We have now thirty-five children under our care; two died last year, one the year before, and one this year. We have reason to hope they are all safely gathered into the arms of "the good Shepherd."

Cruelly of a heathen mother.

Some of the dear children have been rescued from scenes of the most awful cruelty and abject misery: two were nearly murdered, when providentially they were discovered and rescued. Indeed, my dear Sir, I need not tell you, for you well know, that "the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty;" and though, in a general way, the natives of this part of the country manifest much affection for their children, there are some melancholy instances to the contrary. One poor little thing was sent to me by a soldier from a place about forty miles distant, saying the mother was dying, and the child absolutely starving. However, the mother recovered, and about two months after came to see the child, and as it was a mere infant, I thought the mother the most proper person to take

care of it, and wished her to take it, offer. ing to assist her in supporting it. She po sitively refused, saying she did not want it. I wished her to take hold of it, which she did, not with the affection of a mother, but with the brutality of a monster. My servant, who is a conscientious man, said, "Ma'am must not let that woman take that child, she will presently kill it, plenty women do that way.' Of course, I kept the poor child, and a more miserable object I do not expect to see.

Inhuman treatment of a Hindoo orphan.

Another poor girl was left an orphan, and given to her aunt to take care of, but she grew tired of her, and declared if she could not get five rupees for her she would kill her, and was so cruelly treating the child that her screams attracted the notice of a lady, now residing in this place, who sent a servant to inquire the cause, when he found her in a most dreadful state, gave the woman five rupees and delivered the child to the lady, who took much pains to instruct her until she left this country for England; the little girl was then left in the care of a gentleman, but he having died, she was again placed under the care of a heathen who used to beat and very cruelly use her. On hearing of the return of the lady, he brought her to this place for sale, hoping to gain a good sum for her, but of course the lady claimed her, and giving him something for his trouble, sent him away, and committed the girl to our hands. But so determined was the wretched man on mak

A goddess worshipped by the lower castes, whom they suppose sends sickness of various kinds, such as small-pox, cholera, &c., and whose anger they hope to appease by sacrificing goats, fowls, rice, plantain, &c.

for you will easily suppose it is not a small sum that will support thirty-five children. We have not received any supply in any form from any public institution, except the one referred to; therefore if the Ladies' Education Society, or the Tract Society, or any other society should think proper to aid us in any way it will be most thankfully received; and while I say this I must request you will allow me, through this medium, to return our most grateful acknowledgments to those friends who have so kindly contributed towards the support of the school from Bedford, Newport, Mansfield, Leicester, Bradford, Reading, London, and Stepney. It would have been a high gratification to me to have written to all to whom I am obliged,

but the numerous engagements attendant upon the situation I am called to fill in connexion with the domestic duties, and the enervating effect of the climate, prevent my doing what I would rejoice to do.

Indeed the want of time aud strength to do more than we do, often depresses our spirits and saddens our hearts. Similar institutions might be formed in five differ. ent populous towns, had we proper superintendents, and funds to support them. Two or three pious ladies have written to me upon the subject, but I can do nothing. Mrs. Gordon has an interesting school of 12 girls and 13 boys, which is succeeding very well.

SALEM MISSION IN THE SOUTH OF INDIA.

THE appended extracts of a letter from the Rev. George Walton, dated in Septenber last and addressed to the Foreign Secretary, supply an intensely interest ing and affecting view of the state of the native mind in this part of India; the deeply important inquiries on the subject of Christianity, by which it is agitated; and the hopes which may be cherished that, through the unerring guidance and infinite mercy of Him whose kingdom ruleth over all, the great conflict of feeling and opinion now in progress among our Indian fellow-subjects will be so ordered as eventually to secure an universal acceptance by them of that Gospel which is able to make wise unto salvation. From the opening remarks of Mr. Walton, it appears probable that at no distant period neutrality in reference to the religion of Christ will no longer be possible in India, but every individual will be obliged to make his choice, and avow himself either the friend or the enemy of the truth as it is in Jesus. Our brother observes :

Probability of extensive persecution in

India.

The apathy and listlessness for which the Hindoos have been hitherto proverbial, is fast passing away. The progress of the Gospel, the march of intellect, and the spread of knowledge and truth among the votaries of Paganism, have created no small alarm. Angry passions, disputes, and machinations, before unknown, now begin to appear. It is my opinion that, sooner or later, a most violent and cruel persecution will take place in India. Happy would those of your missionaries and the native Christians be on whom the crown of martyrdom should fall. May we who are in the field, and those who shall succeed us, be faithful unto death, not fear nor be dismayed, for in the Lord Jehovah there is everlasting strength, and He will go forth conquering unto conquer, till he shall have made all his enemies his footstool.

Religious excitement at a Native Festival.

The Hindoos annually celebrate a festival called the Dhurmarajah Festival, in honour of the goddess Darobathee, who, to prove her innocence of a crime laid to her

charge, had to pass through the fire and came uninjured from it. Several engage themselves to pass through the fire, and this they perform very expeditiously. When the ceremony was last about to take place, a respectable and intelligent native, who has read many of our books and possesses a considerable knowledge of divine things, took upon himself, in the presence of the assembled multitude, to speak and to en deavour, as far as the force of argument would go, to persuade his fellow-countrymen to desist from this cruel ceremony. As soon as his intention was known, those who were personally interested became enraged, and threatened that if he did not go away, they would make him feel the weight of their anger; he did not appear to be intimidated, but dauntlessly told them to bring out the image of the goddess on whose account, and to obtain whose favour and special protection, they were about to pass through the fire, "Which, for my part," said he, "I consider to be not only a very foolish and unnecessary performance, but cruelty is also combined with it. Let the goddess be put into the fire first; and if she is not burnt, I promise readily to go into the fire