the Scriptures; at which they shewed, externally at least, their satisfaction. One of them bought the Book of Genesis; and three others I presented, on their own request, with the Psalms and Gene sis: they revere the Psalms exceedingly; and the Old Testament would, in general, be received by many of them with plea sure, if it were separated from the New. Several Christians told me that it is a disgrace to give the Mahomedans a book of the Holy Scriptures, and I had much difficulty in convincing them of the ungodliness of such a principle: I often heard Mahomedans say, that the Christians did not suffer them to read our books. The Mahomedans, however, do the same: they would beat a Christian if they happened to meet him with the Korân in his hand; and they cannot conceive that one who reads the Korân should not immediately do homage to Islam. I like very much to hear Ma homedans reading the Bible; because they read it purely and full-sounding, according to the Grammar, as they read the Korân; whereas even the best-educated Christians read it, and can read it only in their broken, corrupted dialect. Towards evening a Coptic Priest invited me to his house: I found several Christians assembled with him, and have hope that they listened to the Truths of the Gospel.

Mit Kammir.

Juły 29,1829-Few people from Zephte coming to me this morning, I went, towards noon-day, to Mit Kammir, a small but populous town, opposite Zephte, on the east bank of this branch of the Nile. About 60 Christian Families live in it, having one Church, with a Kumus and an ordinary Priest. Their School contains 20 Children; to eight of whom, who could read, I presented the Four Gospels. I can scarcely leave any School of the Copts without being greatly afflicted at the excessive rudeness both of the Boys and Adults, whom curiosity attracts, so that it is quite impossible to speak to them a word of exhortation. This afternoon, a considerable number of Copts collected on the ship and on the shore, most of whom were intelligent men, and shewing great curiosity to learn something about the Orders of the English Church: I read with them, in Arabic, the Litany of the Common Prayer Book, which here, as in other places, was very much approved; and the invocation of the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world, gave rise to conver

sation. Towards evening, a Mahomedan Sheik came, asking for a small book for his son: I gave him the Three Epistles of St. John, which he gratefully received. A Christian, seeing it, called to me immediately, saying, " This is no book for the Mahomedans: it is said in it that Christ is the Son of God, which is an abomination to the Mahomedans." I felt exceedingly offended at this un christian and uncalled-for interference, and asked him, "Is not the sun for all men under heaven?" He answered, "Yes."

66 And what would become of us all, were no sun to rise?" As he was not able to answer, I proceeded: "Then the earth would bring forth no fruit, and we should languish away in darkness. Just so it is in spiritual things: Jesus Christ is the Sun of Righteousness; and he only who goes in search of the light of this Sun, and walks in it, will obtain the peace of God and eternal life: the Holy Scriptures, therefore, treating on Jesus Christ, who is the only Mediator of mankind, are given for all men who are willing to receive them: and as to the rest, I do not force these books on any one, nor can I refuse them to any one who wishes for them." The Christian seemed ashamed at my address; but the Mahomedan, after listening attentively to it, returned the book, and went off. However engaging the doctrine of Islam may appear at first sight, as it contains so many beautiful and pure ideas of the One God, yet the true Christian, and especially the Messenger of Christ who has to conflict with it, will soon discover that it is a masterpiece of Satan: it is most defective with reference to the justice and holiness of God, and therefore entirely excludes the doctrine and necessity of a Mediator between God and sinners; and it represents the pious works, or, in the words of St. Augustine, the glittering sins" of its adherents as meritorious, and pleas ing to God.

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Dakadhus.

July 30-This morning I landed at Dakadhus, a village on the east bank, not far from Mit Kammir, which contains about 30 Christian Families, living on agriculture, who have a Church and a Priest: the Priest was absent. Few are able to read; and most of these were in the field. Some of the people gathered near the vessel; with whom I conversed a little, and presented them with Tracts and parts of the Scriptures, which they received thankfully.

Mit Demsis.

In the afternoon, we touched at Mit Demsis, a large village on the east side, where there is a Coptic Convent, pretty regularly built, and consecrated to St. George (Mar Girgis). As there are no Coptic Friars in it at present, it is inha bited by a married Coptic Priest and his family: there are, besides, only seven Christian Families here, who all live within the walls of the Convent. My servant invited one and another to come on board the vessel; but he had no sooner brought, by much persuasion, one of the Cópts, than he jumped on shore, and ran away. I was greatly surprised at this conduct, and lost no time in taking a few Books and going to the Convent. When I arrived, all houses were shut up, from fear an old man at last appeared, whose fears I soon removed, and on whose persuasion the rest successively approached. They told me that, some time ago, a servant of the Pacha arrived here, who forcibly took away two Boys, and carried them to Caïro, to be educated there for the service of the Pacha; and from that day they were in constant fear. After inspecting the Church, to which women, children, old and young, followed me, and, having presented those who could read with parts of the Scriptures and Tracts, a young Greek, who has lived here for some time, invited me to his house. Several Copts joined us, and the leading subject of conversation was, the Kingdom of God Christ urgently calling to us, Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you: but the natural man, "Seek ye first the things of this world." One asked me, among other things, why I had no Cross painted on my arm; which is the univer sal custom of the Copts, as well as of the Syrian Christians. I answered, Be cause I have Christ Himself, who on the cursed wood of the Cross has offered His life for our sins, by faith in my heart; and if you have not THIS, you will not stand, at the Day of Judgment, before the Throne of God, though you have hanging about you and painted on you a thousand Crosses;" which all of them confirmed. One of the party observed: “There is no need for us to make Crosses; since, from the fall of man to this day, God has made crosses everywhere, and in each man's life, in order to guide us to humility; and you have but to stretch out your legs and your arms, and you are yourself a Cross, as

July 30, 1829 Towards noon-day, moored at Sammannoud, a considerable and populous place, on the left bank of this branch of the river: it is adorned with three beautiful towers of Mosques; and is properly the suburb of Mehalet el Kebir, the capital of the Delta, from which it is two hours distant.

August 1-To-day I had to go through another exercise of patience. From the beginning, my boat was not water-proof, and required to be emptied two or three times every day: hitherto it was tolerable; but, last night, such a quantity of water had entered, that this morning, when I awoke, we were terrified to see the boat-room half full of water. therefore, were obliged to work the boat, in a hurry, to a flat part of the shore, in order to empty it, and to have it repaired. Happily, my books have been in a place where they were secured from damage, so that but few were lost.

We,

August 2- This morning two Coptic Priests called: they informed me, that, formerly, a large number of Christians resided here; but that, at this time, only 20 families remained, having one Church, but no School. Three Priests are stationed at the Church, among whom there is a Kumus: they behaved very kindly and openly towards me; and were thankful when I presented them, on their request, with the Psalms, in Coptic and Arabic. Soon after, some other Copts visited me, desiring the Holy Scriptures, and the Psalms, in Coptic and Arabic; but they were greatly amazed, when I asked, for the Bible, 10 piastres, and for the Psalms, in two Languages, 5. They assured me that they had received the Bible from Abuna Wolff for 6, and the Psalms, in Coptic and Arabic, for 1 plastre. Desiring to keep up, in some measure, the sale of the Scriptures, I persisted in my demand; assuring them, that what I asked was but the third or fourth part of their real cost. Seeing that I was unwilling to comply with their request, they

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began to treat me in a contemptuous way: I therefore requested them to leave the boat. They soon came back, took the book for the price which I had demanded; and others followed them. In the afternoon, crowds of Boys and Young Men thronged near the vessel, for Tracts; most of whom were Mahomedans. I carefully avoided asking who were Mahomedans or Christians; and distributed Tracts among all who could read, but especially the Epistles of St. John, and the Parable of the Sower. At this, the Christians exhibited envy and anger; calling to me continually: He is a Mahomedan!" "What a shame!" Among the rest, a bold little Boy pressed towards me, stretching out his hands, and begging a Tract. Some young Christians, who were nearest to him, endeavoured to push him back, calling to me, He is a Mahomedan!" The lit tle Boy, however, lifted up his hands, and swore, either from mistake or from childish simplicity, by the life of his Prophet, that he was a Christian! I gave him a Tract, and dismissed him. Poor Boy! may you become, in the full sense of the word, what you have sworn to be! The tumult of the Boys having attracted the attention of the Sheik of the place, and as I was told that he had summoned several Boys to him in order to see their books, I lost no time in putting on my bornos (a kind of Turkish Cloak), and betaking myself to him, in order to prevent misunderstanding: he received me very kindly, and I was happy enough soon to succeed in satisfying him respecting the occurrence. On leaving, I presented him with a copy of Genesis, which he gratefully accepted. Mothers came and desired Tracts for their sons, and sisters for their brothers; and, when I requested to see them, in order to try their power of reading, they answered, "that they were yet little and could not read; but they apprehended that I should not come again, and they should thus be left with out books, when able to read."

Villages near Sammannoud,

In the vicinity of Sammannoud there are some Villages in which Christians live, who on Sundays come hither to Church hence the concourse of people whom I met with to-day. Towards evening I requested the Captain of the Vessel to steer to the opposite side of the river, hoping to obtain a little retirement; but I was prevented, by several Christians, who approached in boats: I con

versed with them a little on the shore; and, on my promising to visit them again before sailing, they returned. While walking up and down on the bank of the Nile, contemplating the waving waters pressing towards the sea, and absorbed in reflection, on the New Heaven and the New Earth in the 21st chapter of the Apocalypse, I had another unexpected, but cheering visit. A Coptic Husbandman, living opposite Sammannoud, in El Miniet Sammannoud, who had been in Mehalet el Kebir, and to whose wife I had to-day given the Acts and some Tracts, had just crossed the river with his wife, on their way home: the woman knew me immediately; and, after directing her husband's attention to me, they both came. This affectionate, guileless old man knew not how to exhibit his gratitude enough; he kissed my hands many times, and pressed them towards his forehead and heart: they both invited me and the crew to enter their cottage in the neighbouring village, offering to refresh us with all that they could af ford; but it was too late to go there, and I left them with some admonitions, blessing them with the peace of God. It is a custom with the Copts, and with nearly all Oriental Christians, on taking leave` of a Priest, to supplicate his blessing: he puts his hands on the heads of the people, and pronounces on them the peace of God. Such delightful moments occur but seldom, and tend to comfort him on his way. This morning, I sent my servant with a number of books to Mehalet el Kebir, in order to offer them for sale to the Christians who live there: towards evening, he returned, and said, that he had visited all the Mallims, and that all had seen his books and said they were provided with them, having bought them from the Abuna Mueller. The poor man looked very distressed, because nobody would buy his books: he thinks every man should buy the books, concerning which he knows so many good things, viz. all he had learned and conceived from my mouth: in fact, he needed to be looked at with a very friendly countenance, in order to exhilarate him. This is the first time that I have travelled without a Christian Servant. My first Coptic Servant has given up serving, having begun a little trade; and another, whom I took, I was obliged soon to dismiss. The Barabras are looked upon as the most faithful servants, and are generally appointed by the Orientals here as

door-keepers; but the Franks (Europeans) use them also for other purposes, for which they instruct them. Most of these Barabras are married people: they leave their families in their native country, and come a long way down the Nile, to Caïro and Alexandria, in order to gain some money and then return home. My present servant is faithful and affectionate; and though a Mahomedan, yet he is tolerably free from prejudices, and knows very well how to distinguish between a real and a nominal Christian; and though he may perhaps not be said to love the former, yet he estimates them very highly.

Mehalet el Kebir.

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one year-and-a-half the Turkish Dominion would be at its end; and that it would be overthrown by Constantine, the brother of the Russian Emperor, who was to come himself to Egypt, and take possession of it. I asked them, Why did none of you yesterday buy the Word of God?" "Because we are provided with it, having bought it from the Abuna Mueller."- 'I know very well that my friend Abuna Mueller has been here; but I also know how many of the Holy Scriptures he has left here: I do not think that so many as the fifth part of you are provided with the Word of God, except, perhaps, with the Psalms of David the Prophet (the Copts do not call David a King, but always a Prophet); can you prove that it is not so?" -Silence. I went on :-"Pious people in England have sent me to you: I have made the long voyage to Egypt, and am now travelling about here, from pure love to you, in order to do something for the salvation of your immortal souls. Pious people have bestowed much money in printing for you the Word of God and other books, which I have with me, ready to give to the poor for nothing, and to those who are more moneyed at a very moderate rate. Don't you fear God, to treat thus with contempt his Holy Word? or don't you remember that on the great Day of Judgment you will be summoned to give an account of it?" My words made some impression. Several blushed, and confessed that they really did not enough revere the Word of God; but, at the same time, pleaded their poverty: I therefore presented them with Parts of the Scriptures. In the two Schools, I found 10 Boys able to read, among whom I distributed copies of the Acts: neither of the Priests made their appearance; both having hid themselves, to avoid being seized by the soldiers. As the Bey is at present in want of people to labour in the field, many of the meaner ranks among the Copts have hid themselves the soldiers, therefore, sought to seize the Priests, which is a common practice here, in order to force them to procure people to work. I also visited the Divan, where most of the Christians who can read and write are to be met with, and where they are employed in the service of the Pacha; but they treated me in a most opprobrious and contemp tuous way: I therefore left them. Mansoura.

August 3, 1829-This morning, shortly after sun-rise, I proceeded towards Mehalet el Kebir, which lies two hours in land from here. I was obliged to ride, `without a saddle and bridle, on a meagre ass good asses and mules, with the necessary equipments, are to be found only in Caïro and Alexandria. Another ass I loaded with copies of the Scriptures and Tracts. About half-way, we had to cross a large Canal, formerly one of the Seven Branches of the Nile, and bearing different names on different spots. Here it is 'called Bahr-esh-shibin, and disembogues itself partly into the Lake Broulos (on the Map, by mistake, Bourlos), and partly into the Mediterranean. On the other side of this Canal there is a large village, called Mehalet Zein, which, like Dakadhus, near Zephte, is not noticed on any map. Mehalet el Kebir is a considerable town, adorned with twenty towers of Mahomedan Mosques, and the seat of a Bey: a great quantity of linen and variegated woollen clothes are manufactured here; and in the vicinity there is cultivated much flax, hemp, and indigo. About 100 Coptic Families live here, who have a pretty large Church, to which a Kumus and a common Priest are appointed: they have also two Schools, each of which is attended by only from 10 to 15 Boys, and both are in a most miserable condition. I began with visiting the Church; to the fore yard of which curiosity had already conducted a few Christians, who came not, indeed, to hear some good things for their immortal souls, but to learn news about the war: as soon as they perceived that I was not a living Gazette, they had nothing more to say or ask. The Copts thought to have found out from the Apocalypse, and according to a prophecy of one of their Saints, that in

August 4-Moored, towards noon-day,

day, near Mansoura, a considerable and fairly-situated town on the eastern bank of this branch of the Nile, and beautified by seven towers of Mahomedan Mosques: one part is pretty well built with bricks: it has three baths, and the situation of the city is said to be particularly healthy. I delivered several Letters which I had received in Cairo.

Aug. 5, 1829—There reside here about 40 Christian Families, all Copts, who have a Church, with a Kumus and a common Priest. The two Schools which they have are very thinly attended: in one, which is in the fore-yard of the Church, there are 7, and in the other, 15 Children. On the Canal of Mansoura, which disembogues itself into the Lake of Menzaleh, there are two vil lages, in which Christians live: one of them, which is at a distance of one hour from hence, is called Eretenie, and is not marked on any map: there are 8 Christian Families in it, with a Church and two Priests. The second village is Salamoune, an hour remote from Eretenie, towards Menzaleh. About 20 Christian Families live in it, without Church and without School: they go to Eretenie to Church. I have seen here several Christians of both these villages, and presented them with parts of the Scriptures. Opposite Mansoura, two hours inland from the western bank, lies the town of Nabarong; on some maps, wrongly, Nabaron. The Pacha has here a castle of pleasure, where he often resides in retirement: there are also 10 Coptic Families. This morning I sent my servant into the various Divans of Mansoura, where chiefly Copts are em→ ployed as Clerks: the richer ones were, according to their statements, for the most part provided with the Scriptures; among the remainder, many looked at the books and praised them, saying, "The books are good, but we have no money." Nobody bought a single book: I therefore sent my servant a second time; telling them, that if they really felt a desire for the Word of God, and were too poor to buy it, they might come to me on board, and I would present them with parts of the Bible. I then visited the Church of the Copts, which I found pretty well built, but, as everywhere, very dark, and in accordance with their spiritual condition. In the fore-yard of the Church, where the School is, I distributed among the Boys copies of the Acts, and suitable Tracts. After return

ing to the boat, I sent my servant to the other School, inviting the Schoolmaster to come to me on board, in order to receive books for his scholars; but he came not. On my inquiring the reason of his failure, some Christians told me, that he did not like to see his scholars furnished with books, because his income would suffer abatement; while now, for want of books, he receives money for writing sentences on tables of wood and slate, which are used in the School, as was formerly the case in all Coptic Schools: hence the shocking ignorance among them. As a Boy of that School happened to be just then with me, I gave him a hint to intimate to his associates my readiness to present all the Boys, who would call on me, with School-books: this was no sooner known among the Boys, than all the School at once broke up, and came to me on board, where they received with exultation their presents. The Schoolmaster did not venture to oppose, for fear of the Priests and the parents, who love to see the Children furnished with useful books. During the day, many poor Christians came, not only from Mansoura, but also from many neighbouring villages; with whom I conversed, and whom I pre sented, according to their different wants, with parts of the Scriptures and Tracts. Towards evening, several of the Mal lims, of the different Divans, came, according to my invitation, and I provided them with books: they bitterly complained of my having given, during the day, parts of the Scriptures to Mahome, dans. After reprimanding them for their unchristian complaints, and shewing them that the Bible, as the only Book that makes known the Way of Salvation, is made for all men who desire it, I pro ceeded-" You have much reason indeed to fear the Mahomedans when they read the Scriptures; as, in the first instance, they will perceive that you are no real Christians, according to the Doctrine of Jesus Christ and His Apostles, but immersed in errors; that there is no Living Faith working by love to be found among you, and hence, no lively Christianity; and that you live in the dying slumber of superstition and practical infidelity. One of the bystanders, who seemed to have had more conversation with the Missionaries coming this way, made the remark, With this kind of people (that is, Missionaries), nothing can be done; they take the arms, that were