prosecuted their studies with unremitted at tention for about five years.

In the year 1807, a copy of the Gospel of St Matthew in the Chinese Language, trans, lated by Mr. Lassar, and beautifully written by himself, was transmitted to his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury for the Lambeth Library, as the FIRST FRUITS of the Chinese Institution in Bengal.-Since that period a portion of the New Testament has been printed off from blocks, after the Chinese manner.

The proficiency of the Chinese pupils has far surpassed the most sanguine hopes which were entertained. His Excellency Lord Minto, Governor-General of India, has recorded in his first annual Speech to the College of Fort William, the following testimony to their progress in the language, and to the importance of their attainments.

"If I have not passed beyond the legitimate bounds "of this discourse, in ranging to the extremity of those

countries, and to the furthest island of that vast "Archipelago in which the Malay Language prevails, "I shall scarcely seem to transgress them, by the short "and easy transition thence to the language of CHINA. "I am, in truth, strongly inclined, whether regularly "or not, to deal one encouraging word to the merito"rious, and, I hope, not unsuccessful effort, making, I "may say, at the door of our College, though not ad"mitted to its portico, to force that hitherto impreg

"nable fortress, the Chinese Language.-Three young "men, I ought indeed to say, boys, have not only ac quired a ready use of the Chinese Language, for the "purpose of oral communication (which I understand " is neither difficult nor rare amongst Europeans con"nected with China), but they have achieved, in a de

gree worthy of admiration, that which has been "deemed scarcely within the reach of European facul"ties or industry; I mean a very extensive and cor "rect acquaintance with the written Language of China. "I will not detail the particulars of the Examination "which took place on the 10th of this month (Febru

ary 1808,) at Serampore, in the Chinese Language, "the report of which I have read, however, with great "interest, and recommended to the liberal notice of "those whom I have the honour to address. It is "enough for my present purpose to say that these 66 young pupils read Chinese books and translate them; "and they write compositions of their own in the "Chinese language and character. A Chinese PRESS "too is established, and in actual use. In a word, if "the founders and supporters of this little College have "not yet dispelled, they have at least sent and ad"mitted a dawn of day through that thick impenetra"ble cloud: they have passed that Oceanum dissociabilem, "which for so many ages has insulated that vast Em"pire from the rest of mankind.

"I must not omit to commend the zealous and per66 severing labours of Mr. LASSAR, and of those learned "and pious persons associated with him, who have ac"complished, for the future benefit, we may hope, of "that immense and populous region, CHINESE VER"SIONS in the Chinese Character, of the GOSPELS of

" Matthew, Mark, and Luke, throwing open that pre"cious mine, with all its religious and moral treasure, "to the largest associated population in the world.” *

When this Chinese class was first established, it was ordained that there should be regular public Examinations and Disputations, as at the College of Fort-William. The Examination in September 1808, (a few months after the above Speech of Lord Minto was pronounced) was held in the presence of J. H. Harrington, Esq. Vice-President of the Asiatic Society, Dr. Leyden, and other Oriental scholars; when the three youths, mentioned above, maintained a Disputation in the Chinese Language. On this occasion, the Respondent defended the following position: "To commit "to memory the Chinese Classics is the best "mode of acquiring the Chinese Language."

One most valuable effect of these measures is a work just published by Mr. Joshua Marshman, the elder pupil of Mr. Lassar. It is the first volume of "the Works of Confucius, con"taining the Original Text, with a translation; "to which is prefixed a Dissertation on the "Chinese Language, pp. 877. 4to." to be followed by four volumes more. This translation will be received with gratitude by the learned,

* See College Report for 1808.

and will be considered as a singular monument of the indefatigable labour of an English Missionary in the acquisition of a new language.

While treating of the cultivation of the Chinese Language, it is just that we should notice also the endeavours of the London Missionary Society in the same department. While Mr. Lassar and Mr. Marshman are translating the Scriptures at Calcutta, Mr. Morrison is prosecuting a similar work at Canton in China, with the aid of able native scholars. It is stated in the report of their Society, that the principal difficulties have been surmounted, and that the period of his acquiring a complete knowledge of the language is by no means so distant as what he once expected. "It has "proved of great advantage to him that he

66

copied and carried out with him the Chinese "translation of the Gospels preserved in the "British Museum, which he now finds, from "his own increasing acquaintance with the lan

guage, and the opinion of the Chinese assist"ants, to be exceedingly valuable, and which "must, from the excellency of the style, have "been produced by Chinese natives." He adds, that the manuscript of the New Testament is fit to be printed; and that he proposes to publish also a Dictionary and a Grammar of the language, the last of which is already "pre

pared for the press.”* The expense to the London Missionary Society for the current year, in the Chinese department alone, is stat ed to be £500. We greatly admire the liberal spirit which animates this institution in the pro secution of its noble designs.

The foregoing notices of the progress of Chinese literature will, it is presumed, be acceptable to many; for the cultivation of the Chinese language, considered merely in a political point of view, must prove of the utmost advantage to this country, in her further transactions with that ancient and ingenious, but jealous, incommunicative, and partially civi lized nation.

THE HINDOOS.

Ir is admitted by all writers that the civilization of the Hindoos will be promoted by intercourse with the English. But this only applies to that small portion of the natives, who live in the vicinity of Europeans, and mix with them. As for the bulk of the population, they scarcely ever see an Englishman. It becomes then of importance" to ascertain what have been the

* See Report for 1810, p. 22.