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so disgraced in any age of the Church, as it has been lately, by our official neglect of the Protestant Church in Ceylon.

I passed the day at Mount Lavinia, the country residence of General Maitland, the Governor of Ceylon; and had some conversation with his Excellency on the religious state of the country. He desired I would commit to writing and leave with him a memorandum of inquiries which I wished should be made on subjects relating to the former prevalence of the Protestant Religion in the island, and the means of reviving and establishing it once more. His Excellency expressed his conviction that some Ecclesiastical Establishment ought to be given to Ceylon; as had been given to other Colonies of His Majesty in America and the West Indies. He asked what was the cause of the delay in giving an Ecclesiastical Establishment to the Continent of India. I told him I supposed the chief cause was the mixed government of our Indian Empire. It was said to be a question at home, who ought to originate it. Had there been no revolution in Europe to distract the attention of the nation, and had Mr. Pitt lived, many things of a grand and arduous character would have been done which are yet left undone. There are now three missionaries of the London Society established in three different parts of the island. It gave me great pleasure to find that General Maitland, and the senior Chaplain at Columbo, the Honourable Mr. Twisleton, had afforded their patronage in the most liberal manner to these useful teachers. Government has allowed to each of them an annual

stipend. In returning from the country I passed through the groves of CINNAMON, which extend nearly a mile in length. Ceylon is believed by some of the Easterns, both Mahomedans and Hindoos, to have been the residence of the first man (for the Hindoos have a First Man, and a Garden of Eden, as well as the Christians) because it abounds in Trees pleasant to the eyes, and good for food; and is famous for its rare metals and precious stones. There is gold, bdellium, and the onyx-stone.' The rocky ridge which connects this happy island with the main land, is called Adam's Bridge; the lofty mountain in the middle of the island every where visible, is called Adam's Peak: and there is a sepulchre of immense length, which they call Abel's Tomb. All these names were given many ages before the introduction of Christianity from Europe:-The Cinnamon trees love a sandy soil. The surface of the ground appeared to be entirely sand. I thought it wonderful that the most valuable of all trees should grow luxuriance in such an arid soil without human culture. I compared them in my mind to the Ceylon Christians in their present state, who are left to flourish by themselves under the blessing of heaven, without those external and rational aids which have been divinely appointed to nourish the Church of Christ.'

in

• Columbo, 11th March, 1808.

I have conversed with intelligent persons on the means of translating the Scriptures into the Cingalese

Language. The whole of the New Testament has been translated, but only three books of the Old Testament. But even this portion has been translated almost in vain for there is no supply of books for the use of the people. I reflected with astonishment

the fact, that there are by computation 500,000 natives in Ceylon professing Christianity, and that there should not be one complete copy of the Holy Scriptures in the vernacular tongue. Samuel Tolfry, Esq. head of a civil department in Columbo, is a good Cingalese scholar, and is now engaged in compiling a Cingalese dictionary. I proposed to him to undertake the completion of the Cingalese Version; which is easily practicable, as there are many learned Cingalese Christians in Columbo. He professed himself ready to engage in the work, provided he should receive the sanction of the government. I mentioned to him what had passed in my conversation with General Maitland, and his Excellency's favourable sentiments on the subject; and added that a correspondence would be immediately commenced with him from Calcutta, concerning the work, and funds apportioned for the execution of it.-Alexander Johnstone, esq. who is now in Columbo, has furnished me with his sentiments on the best means of reviving and maintaining the Protestant interest in Ceylon. Did his professional avocations permit, Mr. Johnstone is himself the fit person to superintend the translation and printing of the Scriptures. It is a proof of the interest which this gentleman takes in the progress of Christian knowledge, that he hath caused Bishop

Porteus's Evidences of Christianity to be translated into the Cingalese tongue, for distribution among the natives.'

THE MALAYS.

A NEW empire has been added to Great Britain in the East, which may be called her Malay Empire. The extensive dominion of the Dutch in the Indian Ocean, is devolving upon the English; and it may be expected that Britain will soon be mistress of the whole of the MALAYAN ARCHIPELAGO. But as we increase our territories, we increase our obligations. Our duties to our Hindoo Empire have been long enough the subject of discussion: let us now turn our attention to the obligations which we owe to our Malay Empire. We are now about to take possession of islands, peopled by numbers of Protestant Christians. For in every island where the Dutch established their government, they endeavoured to convert the natives to Christianity, and they were successful. Those amongst us who would recommend that the evangelization of barbarous nations should be deferred "till amore convenient season," will have no opportunity of offering the advice in regard to some of the islands: for,

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behold, the natives are Christians already. They profess the religion of the Bible. Let it be our endeavour then to do more justice to these our new Protestant subjects than we have done to the Christians of Ceylon. We have less excuse in the present instance, for the Malay Scriptures are already translated to our hands. What a noble field here opens to the view of the "Society for "promoting Christian Knowledge," and of the Bible Society! Here there is ample room for a praise-worthy emulation, and for the utmost exercise of their benevolent exertions. One hundred thousand Malay Bibles will not suffice to supply the Malay Christians.

The Sacred Scriptures were translated by the Dutch into the Eastern Malay ;* for that is the general language of their extensive dominions in the Indian Sea. But the Eastern Malay is different from the Western Malay, or that of Sumatra. In the College of Fort-William, Thomas Jarret, esq. of the Honourable Company's Civil Service, was preparing a version of the Scriptures in the Western Malay; for

* A complete version of the Malay Bible was published in the Arabic character at Batavia, in 5 vols. 8vo. in 1758, under the direction of Jacob Mossel, Governor-General of the Dutch possessions in the East Indies.