place of the first, in a short time, followed him into eternity. Thus the undertaking was suspended till 1767, when brother Benjamin Brukshaw, a native of Cheshire, resolved to go thither by himself, and renew the mission. He arrived in the island in May, and immediately waited on the President of the council, and the resident clergy, all of whom approved of his design, and wished him God's blessing for his labours. These he began at Bridgetown, preaching the gospel to the Negroes and visiting them on their plantations. Many proprietors favoured the undertaking, encouraged their slaves to hear the gospel, and attended themselves.

In August brother J. Bennet came from North-America to assist in the work. As the number of their hearers was constantly increasing, they purchased a small house and fitted it up, both for dwellings and a meeting-place. The Negroes, not only attended divine service on the Lord'sday, but frequently visited the missionaries during the week; so that they were often employed from morning till night. The gospel found entrance into the hearts of some, and a Negroe woman was baptized on the 10th of September 1768, being the first fruits of this mission. Soon after five others were added to the church by this holy ordinance. Many planters, perceiving the good effects following the labours of our brethren, invited them to preach on their estates

This encouraging prospect, however, did not long continue. It soon appeared, that many Negroes had attended the preaching from mere curiosity; these, therefore, as soon as the novelty ceased, intermitted their attendance. Among the few stated hearers little of vital godliness was to be discovered; so that the missionaries found little freedom to admit any to baptism.

After the removal of brother Brukshaw, who in 1771 went to Antigua, and the decease of brother Bennet in 1772, the mission was involved in very distressing circumstances. Pecuniary and other difficulties oppressed it from

* Brethren's History, Vol. i. p. 602.

without, and dissensions among the missionaries themselves disturbed its internal peace, and injured the work in which they were engaged. At length only one missionary was left on the island; and thus, neither the public preaching of the gospel, nor the instruction of the few baptized and the catechumens, could be properly attended to.

:

The following year brother John Angerman arrived and renewed the work with zeal and courage, and not wholly without success; but he finished his earthly career in 1775. His fellow-labourer continued, amidst many difficulties, to sow the seed of the word, in hopes of a plentiful harvest at some future period, for as yet the prospect was far from encouraging *.

About this time the brethren occupied two stations. Brother Meder and his wife lived in a hired house near BRIDGETOWN, and another missionary and his wife, together with an unmarried brother, resided in the missionhouse in the parish of ST. THOMAS. In both these places they suffered severely from the hurricane, which raged in October 1780. Their houses and offices in both places were thrown down. In vain, did they seek an asylum in other houses, for they shared the same fate. With the utmost difficulty they escaped being buried under the ruins, and were obliged to weather the storm in the open air, without shelter of any kind. They lost nearly all their provisions and property, and the mission was thus thrown into new difficulties +.

No very promising change took place for several subsequent years. Few Negroes, except those who had formerly been baptized, and who did not exceed twenty in number, attended the preaching. They were indeed ready enough to assent to the truth of what the missionaries told them; but secret enmity to the gospel lurked in their hearts, and they appeared to be in an awful manner under the in

* Brethren's History, Vol. ii. p. 117 and 272.

+ The hurricane lasted twenty-four hours. Trees and plantations were destroyed: churches and many houses thrown down; and several thousand persons lost their lives. Brethren's History, Vol. ii. p. 280.

fluence of the power of darkness. The planters also, with few exceptions, were rather averse to their slaves becoming christians *.

In the year 1790 the prospect became more cheering. The auditories increased, and sometimes amounted to a hundred and fifty: a small number indeed, when compared with the crowded congregations in Antigua and the Danish West India islands; but in Barbadoes even this increase was hailed with feelings of joy and gratitude. Their zeal and hope were still more enlivened by observing the saving power of the gospel in several heathen Negroes, who were admitted to baptism, and the consistent walk of those who had long been members of the church. By degrees more of the planters became favourably disposed towards the mission, and it was treated with respect by the government +.

The situation of the mission-house in the parish of ST. THOMAS had long been considered as an obstacle to the prosperity of the mission. For some years the dwellings of our brethren had been in a ruinous condition, and the situation both unhealthy and inconvenient, as there was no proper road leading to it, and the members of the congregation resided mostly at a considerable distance. Measures were, therefore, taken in 1794 to obtain a new place for their residence. This was happily accomplished by the purchase of a small estate, containing four acres of ground, with a large house upon it. In July brother Hofeman and his wife moved thither, and the other missionaries followed in some time. They found it a very eligible situation, being much nearer to the town than their former residence, and in the midst of populous estates. They called it SHARON ‡.

Brother Hodgson and his wife, who had for some time served the mission in St. Kitt's, but had received an appointment to Barbadoes, on their way to that island from Antigua in 1797, must have been lost at sea, as no intel

Brethren's History, Vol. iii. p. 392. + Ibid. Vol. iv. p. 385. Per. Acct. Vol. i. p. 260. Ibid. Vol. iii. p. 390.

Bb

ligence was received, either from them, or any of the passengers on board the packet with which they sailed *.

The following year brother Waller and his wife, together with the single sister Mary Grant, on, their passage from Bristol to Barbadoes, suffered shipwreck off Kinsale in Ireland, the vessel striking on a rock, about two hundred yards from the shore. During four hours they were in constant fear of being swallowed up by the waves; till, by the ebbing of the tide, they found it practicable to reach the land. Scarcely, however, had they escaped the fury of the waves, when a company of robbers rushed upon them with knives and hatchets, and plundered the wreck, threatening the lives of the crew and passengers. Fortunately a party of soldiers at that instant made their appearance, and fired upon the depredators, by which five of them were killed. During this horrid scene the passengers effected their escape, but could save nothing of their property, except the clothes they had on. The ship was entirely lost. The Methodist minister in Kinsale, and several members of his congregation, shewed them much kindness, and supplied them with the needful articles of clothing. In January 1799 they sailed in a vessel from Cork, and had a very pleasant and expeditious voyage to Barbadoes t.

Since the building of the new chapel at SHARON the missionaries had in general pretty large and attentive auditories, and a gradual increase to the number of the baptized, which in 1800 amounted to upwards of one hundred and sixty. In succeeding years no change of any moment occurred in this mission. Compared with the la bours of our brethren in the other islands, their exertions here were crowned with little success; but they were encouraged to proceed in the path of duty, when considering the value of one human soul, if gained for Christ by the preaching of the gospel; knowing that their judgment was with the Lord, and their reward with their God.'

* Brethren's History, Vol. iv. p. 389. Brethren's History, Vol. iv. p. 389..

+ Per. Acct. Vol. ii. p. 248.

In 1812 an event occurred, which threw all the inhabitants into the utmost consternation, and which was occasioned by the eruption of mount Soufriere. The reader will find an interesting account of this awful phenomenon, as far as its effects were felt in Barbadoes, in the following letter, written by brother Ganson, one of the missionaries:

"Having had no rain for a long time, April 30th in the evening, about ten o'clock, the sky looked extremely dark, and we expected heavy rain in the night, which be ing much wanted, created great joy. However, on May 1st, early in the morning, a most extraordinary and awful phenomenon presented itself, to the great alarm of all the inhabitants. At day-break about five o'clock, the horizon to the south, appeared remarkably light. At six, thick clouds had covered the whole sky, from whence issued, not indeed the long expected fruitful rain, but showers of a substance resembling dust, or ashes, but which were particles of volcanic matter. It now grew so excessively dark, that the like had never been seen nor heard of before. It reminded me of that awful darkness, when all nature seemed to shudder, and the sun hid his face at the expiration of the Son of God upon the cross. In this state of awful uncertainty, we looked up to our Almighty Father and Preserver, and he filled our hearts with peace. At seven o'clock our whole family was called together, and during a solemn feeling of our helplessness, we exhorted each other to faith and trust in God our Redeemer, offered up fervent prayer for ourselves and our fellow men, and were richly comforted by a sense of his divine presence. This inexplicable and utter darkness continued till about half past twelve o'clock. About one, a little light from the sun's rays appeared, to the great comfort of every human being in the island. About three o'clock many Negroes from far and near, assembled together in our church, forming a large congregation, to whom a discourse was delivered on the text, "The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments Psalm cxi. 7. concluded with fervent prayer.

are sure."

"The great church of Bridgetown was, on this awful