Mission to the Shyans. OF A LETTER FROM MR. EXTRACTS involved in the fulfilment of these promises. I would not have you think that we are without our trials. Nowe sometimes find whole villages, who, though they assent to the truth and claims of the gospel, yet, living under the Burman government, dare not em- Charlton, who is absent in consequence We are occupying the house of Capt. brace it, lest they share the same fate of his wound received among the as their brethren in the region of Singphos last year, and who has generRangoon. They say that they willously offered us his house till we are worship God with their hearts, but to please the Burmans must now and then fall down and worship pagodas. This is the case with the village now before me. Our souls have been in bitterness, while we have been endeavoring to publish salvation in the name of Jesus, to see how the fear of those "who can kill the body," predominates over the fear of Him "who can destroy both soul and body in hell." Yet even in this region God seems determined to raise up a seed to serve him. Day before yesterday, Mr. Vinton left me here to talk to those who should come here, and went out into the mountains east, to spend the day at a village, where two men had promised to worship God. At night he sent me a note, saying, that the Lord had opened a door for extensive usefulness; that there were villages scattered all over the mountains, and people were listening with great interest, and that he should not return for a number of days. how I have had some interesting visiters from the mountains on the west side of the river, who not only promised to worship God, but, when I told them I would have a season of prayer with them, two of the oldest men prayed without being asked. They are, ever, extremely ignorant, having never heard the word of God before. One of them seeing one of the little cups the Board provided for us, begged it that he might offer rice to God. I told him God did not want any of his rice-but he must worship him as we had done, and avoid sin; that would be sufficient. He assented. The Karens in all this region have a tradition that God is about to visit this world in human form. Numbers have inquired if Mr. V. was not God. And when told that he was not, they inquired if he was not his Son-one man even attempted to do him reverence. But soon, yes soon, this darkness and ignorance shall be dispelled before the beams of the Sun of Right eousness, able to build for ourselves. This place is an excellent missionary station in many respects, and I hope that we shall be able to occupy it during the remainder of our lives, and that the blessing of God may rest upon our labors. The population of Sadiyá is scattered, the speak a dialect of the Bangálí language. greater portion being Asamese, who There are two or three villages of Khamtis or Shyáns. But the great body of Shyáns and Singphos lie to the east of us, and occupy the whole territory between here and Barmáh. We intend to devote our principal efforts for the present to the Shyans, and particularly to the acquisition of their language, in which we have already made some progress. There are two extensive races occupying the country north of us, extending from here to Bhútán;-the Mishmis, who reside in the valley of the Dibáng river, and the neighboring mountains, and the A'bors, who extend up the Diháng or Sánpú, The latter people are savages, very the great branch of the Brahmaputra. much resembling the American Indians in their appearance and habits. We had a visit from some of their warriors last week, who came down to the cantonments with the hope of recovering some of their slaves, who had run away and had taken refuge here. A large number of the A'bors have recently come down from the mountains, and have obtained permission to settle within about a day's journey of this place. We are extremely anxious to commence missionary operations among them; but we shall not be able to do so, as we have concluded on devoting ourselves to the Shyáns and Singphos. I hope that some missionary will come out expressly for the A'bors and Mishmis, and I should hope also that one might be sent to labor among the Asamese. The A'bors and Mishmis have no written language, and probably no fixed religious system. The Asámese about Sadiyá are in nearly the same state, as very few of them have yet embraced the Hindu religion, and not one in a hundred can read. The | Moutel, who resides at the same place, Shyans have books, and can generally takes lessons with them. Another read. Their religion is the same as from Bertry, J. B. Pruvots, has just that of the Barmáns. The Singphos brought his family to Douai, for the have no written language. purpose of pursuing the study of the Greek with us. France. EXTRACTS OF LETTERS FROM MESSRS. According to previous arrangements, Messrs. Willmarth and Willard, with their families, removed from Paris to the Department of the North, early in June, with a view to the establishment of a mission school at Nomain, and the building up of the churches in that vicinity. Their residence for the present is at Douai, from which Nomain is not far distant. It is their intention to remove to the latter place as soon as the requisite buildings can be prepared. Our first extracts are from a letter dated Douai, Aug. 9, 1836. Under date Sept. 6, Mr. Willard expresses much anxiety for the health of Mr. Willmarth, which has become seriously impaired, and urges the necessity of his taking immediate measures for its restoration. From the day of my arrival at Paris, Mr. Willmarth has not actually been able to do any thing at all. I found him very feeble, his reduced condition being probably the result of too great exertion, and of exposures during his second tour to this region. You are probably acquainted with the object of that visit. Though unfit to do anything since the time mentioned, he has yet done much. Until our arrival last fall he sustained the undivided weight of all the cares, anxieties, and perplexities of the mission. And since that, owing to his acquaintance with all its concerns, he There has been little change in our has managed most of them though department since our last communica- frequently unable to go out, and often tion to you. The little which has ocunable to sit up. He accompanied curred is of an encouraging character. br. Sheldon and myself, on our journey It relates, principally, to the church at hither last Spring, and acted a princiBertry, of which M. Dusart is pastor. pal part in all that was done. And up During the summer, there have been to the present moment, he has not two cases of proselytism from the resigned the care and superintendence catholics; they were two young wo- of the mission affairs. But he must men. Their brothers, who are married, give them up, and attend wholly to treated them with the greatest barbari-himself, or there will be no hope of ty. One of them going to his mother's house, and finding his sister in bed, dragged her therefrom by the hair of her head, and beat her most unmercifully with a cudgel in the presence of the mother and of the curate of the village. The beating was inflicted by the brothers three several times upon each of the young women. Other severe means were ineffectually employed to reclaim them,-they continue, to this day, to frequent the chapel of M. Dusart, and one of them gives evidence of piety. The brethren at Bertry are now engaged in finishing the inside of their chapel, for which object the two girls above mentioned subscribed ten francs. M. Dusart has baptized three or four persons during the summer. M. Thieffry hopes to be set down soon at Lannoy. He has been hitherto prevented by the impossibility of finding a house for his accommodation. Two of our students, Cretin and Caulier, are pursuing their studies at Orchies; they are doing very well. his life. He is no longer able to travel from place to place, visiting the churches.-There are no travelling conveniences for invalids, in this country, without great expense; public conveyances will carry a man over the ground pretty rapidly, but without regard to his comfort. And it is impossible for an invalid to go among the villagers of this country, and be at ease, so little do they generally attend to what is considered comfort in New England. They are always glad to see the missionaries, and they always do their best for them. But it not unfrequently requires a truly heroic spirit, to pass any time with them. A man in health can eat, for a day, what he does not relish; he can sleep on straw for a night, or he can pass a night without sleep. But a man of feeble health cannot, without serious disadvantage, encounter such irregularities. Br. W. has already injured himself in this way, and we are fully convinced that he must, for a time, entirely abandon for a season. find out the people, and to hold worship with them. advised those present, to assemble After service, Mr. D. themselves as soon the consideration of the subject. A as possible, for day was accordingly appointed. It was thought a place for holding meetWe re-ings could be obtained without difficulty. We proffered our services, by way of preaching. his labors, or never be any better. I feel very anxious on his account, and deem it my duty to urge him to rest The churches and brethren must be contented with my visits and my French, instead of his, for the present. While I write this, he is obliged to keep his bed. turned last evening from Lannoy, where we passed the Sunday with the little church of that place. Although as careful as circumstances would permit him to be, he caught a cold, and is now quite down with it. He could not preach, though he made a few remarks, and broke bread to them, as it was their communion season. Though I feel quite unprepared to go forward, owing to my want of readiness in the use of the language, yet I shall not stop a moment. I can make myself understood, and that must suffice till time and practice render me more expert. In regard to the general state of the mission Mr. Willard writes, Owing to various circumstances, we have not as yet had any public worship, in this city, though there are here many English, and a few French, protestants. We have not found out these English people till quite lately. We were introduced to them rather providentially about six days ago. An English woman was buried that day and a Mr. Durelle, a national minister, was sent for to bury her. We did not know of her sickness or death, till that day. About ten minutes before the time of the funeral a Mr. Brown, who was acquainted with br. Willmarth, called at our house to notify us of the service, thinking we might wish to be present, as it would be a good opportunity to see the English people. We were out, and did not come in soon enough to attend the funeral. But early in the evening, our student, br. Pruvots, who is personally acquainted with Mr. Durelle, came with an invitation from him, for us to attend a meeting that evening, at the house of an Englishman, where the woman above mentioned had died. We immediately decided to go, and on arriving, found a large room full of English people taking tea. After the repast, Mr. Durelle, who is an Isle of Jersey man, and who speaks French better than English, proposed that one of us should preach in English, that evening. We consented. Before the service commenced, br. W. told Mr. D. that we had been wishing to We are convinced, that as soon as we shall be able to preach fluently, in French, we can do as much for the mission, in that way, as in any other. We are not only gladly received by them, but if it be known that we are present, there is always a greater number out. And whatever is said by br. Willmarth at any time, is received with a fixed attention, and exerts an influence over their minds, even much more powerful than if he were a native. I have no doubt that if we were able to enter the field with the Irvingites, we could, in a few months, chase them out of the realm. But br. W. has not the health, and I am not yet a Frenchman.-In regard to sending out another laborer, I would observe, that some time must necessarily elapse, before one can do anything in French. Under the most favorable circumstances, a man can do but little, short of one year. In that time a man possessing a tact to acquire languages, will begin to speak and write to some purpose. If we meet with no reverses, we shall need a man as soon as he can come, at least if it be intended to prosecute the mission to advantage. We were highly gratified to find the little church at Lannoy on the foundation of the apostles. They have no longer any unbaptized mem bers among them, and they commune with none who walk disorderly. The same is true of the church at Baisieux. Br. Thieffry is making preparations for removing to Lannoy. He will have those two little churches under his immediate inspection continually. Br. Dusart is not yet at rest. It seemą. that the wicked member of whom we wrote in our last, as having returned to the church with confession, was not sincere in that act. He has since disappointed the hopes of the brethren, by going after the Irvingites, and by finally joining them. Br. Dusart himself has been visited with affliction in his family, having buried his only daughter. He much needs the prayers of the faithful. His trials are at present great on every side. But we hope and trust he will come out of them, as gold out of the furnace, more pure. I think good could be effected here by the circulation of tracts and by the sale of the Scriptures, or by the gratuitous distribution of them. We have received from Paris, tracts to the amount of fifty francs at our own cost, and a number of bibles and testaments, with the privilege of returning what we do not sell. On the day of the funeral mentioned above, br. Pruvots distributed quite a number of tracts among the people at the grave; they were very anxious to have them, and almost forced them from him, supposing, as he afterwards ascertained, that they were a gift from the deceased. The next day others came to his house, to ask for tracts, in the name of the deceased. It gave him an opportunity to make quite a distribution. On our late excursion to Lannoy we took a bundle of tracts along, and br. W. offered them to all our company, of which we had four sets at different times. They all uniformly received them with expressions of satisfaction, and in several instances they at once commenced reading them, and, having perused the contents, they would remark-c'est bien interessant, c'est bien raisonné;- and other similar expressions of satisfaction were frequent. They were also intelligent people. One of them was an advocate general, residing in this city. After accepting and perusing one tract, he expressed so much satisfaction that br. W. gave him another. They frequently asked him if he made the tracts. I do not recollect one instance of sneering, on the part of those to whom the tracts were offered. Whether their expressions of satisfaction were merely complimentary, or not, I cannot say; but I should think not: but still I do not know the exact value of such coin. Br. Willmarth has long since distributed all the tracts he brought from America. I wish we had a good quantity of first rate tracts, nicely done up. Many of the French tracts are not very good; that is, they do not have so much to do with religion as we could wish. The narrative of the burning of the ship Kent, is a favorite one, I believe, here, but though interesting as a narrative, it does not seem to be the thing. If we had some good tracts exhibiting sound reasoning-presenting affecting appeals to the heart and conscience-and prettily done up, they would be received by people of any rank. The French think as much as any body, of appearance. EXTRACTS FROM MR. ROLLIN'S JOURNAL. (Continued from p. 224.) Repeated Baptisms-Progress of Creeks in learning to read. March 20, 1836. A large collection at worship. Good attention to the word preached, by the whole assembly; deep feeling manifested by some in tears and sobs. The Lord water the seed sown; may it spring up and bring forth an abundant harvest. 26. The brethren met to-day according to appointment. The individuals mentioned Feb. 27, were present, and renewed their request. They were received as candidates for baptism. 27. Lord's-day. The assembly was solemn in the house of prayer, and at the river side where prayer was wont to be made. The two Africans were baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity, by br. Davis. Returned to the house of worship, and the church sat down to commemorate the sufferings of Jesus. The scenes and duties of this day have been impressive and deeply interesting. April 3. A good assembly at worship. Br. Davis preached to an attentive congregation in the morning. I preached to a listening audience in the afternoon. 7. To-day visited some members of the church; found one of our Indian brethren sick, but enjoying a happy state of mind. In answer to questions which I proposed, he said, "It is my choice to leave the world, if it is the will of the Lord. I feel as though some one has been teaching me of late, I hardly know how. I have been anxious to see you," &c. 10. Our place of worship was nearly filled with attentive hearers. I was pleased to see, among others, an Indian woman of the late emigration, who informed me she had a letter from the Baptist church in Concord, Alabama, and that it would be her privilege to unite with us. Sickness has prevented her attending meeting before this. Some of the Indians appear much. interested in the plan of reading in their own language according to the system introduced among them by br. a peculiar privilege, to communicate the truths of the gospel to the precious immortals, who assembled to hear the word of God. 24. Visited several families. Felt sensibly impressed with the darkness and ignorance of the minds of this people: my heart sunk within me as the evidence rose up before me. My only refuge was the word and promise of God; here I found relief. Davis. We have of late made use of some of his hymns in our seasons of worship. It is very interesting to see those who a few months since were unable to read, stand up in the solemn assembly with their books in their hands, to sing the praises of God. Br. Davis is much interested in introducing the plan among his countrymen, and in teaching them to read in their own language the wonderful works of God. He will probably write you soon some particulars about the number of those instructed, &c. In connexion with br. Davis, or with his approbation, I have employed one of our young Indian brethren for a month to assist br. Davis in teaching, with the understanding, that if he succeeded well and devoted himself to the work, it would probably be the pleasure of the Board to employed a desire to walk in the footsteps of him several months. After mentioning the departure of Miss Rice, to join the Mission at Sault de Ste. Marie, Mich., (p. 225,) on account of long continued ill health in so southern a latitude, the journal proceeds, under date April 11. It may be my duty to remove from this station at some future time. The fever and ague has hung about me all winter, and thus far through the spring, notwithstanding I am unwilling to leave this dear church and this benighted people now. The future I desire to leave with the Lord. My own views of duty and those of my companion are the same. We feel it our duty to stay and make further trial of the climate. Mrs. Rollin recommenced her school March 14. She has had from ten to fifteen scholars. 23. Church meeting; a season of much interest. Some who had wandered from the path of duty, returned today, with weeping and confession. 24. A goodly number attended worship; much feeling manifested, particularly during the afternoon ser vice. May 1. Not so many at worship to-day as usual; good order and solemnity apparent. 8. Our place of worship was nearly filled with attentive hearers. The opportunities of the day were blest to my own soul. The precious truths of God's word were sweet and refreshing. I felt some desire to be unreservedly devoted to the service of my Lord. Like Paul, I desire to "press forward." 15. Lord's-day. A full house of attentive hearers. Felt it a privilege, 29. A full house at worship; some were affected even to tears, while listening to the word preached. June 4. Yesterday and to-day were spent in visiting and conversing with various individuals on the important concerns of the soul, and in teaching the Indians to read in their own language. Found several individuals who express Jesus. The interviews I have enjoyed have been precious and profitable to myself, and, I trust, to others also whom I have visited. 5. Lord's-day. Our place of worship was full of attentive listeners. I trust a rich harvest of souls will be gathered from among this nation to the praise and glory of God's rich, free, and sovereign grace. 12. A goodly number at worship. The solemn countenance and the falling tear from many eyes, manifested the deep feelings of the soul, and gave evidence that the Holy Spirit was near, to impress the heart with the precious truths of the gospel. 18. The church members, many of them, came together according to appointment. We had a precious interview. Three Africans offered themselves for baptism. After hearing a relation of their Christian experiences, the church unanimously received them to become particular members after baptism. The relation of their exercises was clear and very satisfactory. One male and two females, all in the prime of life. 19. Lord's-day. A full house at worship. A solemn attention to the word, manifested by nearly all present. The season at the river side was deeply interesting. To close the public exercises of the day, the church came around the sacramental board to "eat of that bread, and drink of that cup," designed to show forth the sufferings of our great High Priest. Some of the spectators appeared very solemn. The scenes and duties of this day have been deeply impressive and interesting. We have several interesting inquirers |