tacles to grapple ? If knowledge could it be prejuthis in my next. prospering. More fifty meet in Class;

many more listen to instruction; and a leaven at least of humanity has spread itself over the island. If we had a sufficient number of Missionaries, I believe the time is at hand, when very many of these people would turn to the Lord.

-Extract of a Letter from the Rev. Messrs. Cross and Cargill, dated Lakemba, Sept. 15th, 1836.

long and anxiously portunity of forwarding to you, when the th arrived on the 29th of us a few supplies, and the gence that five new Mistheir families had been y at Vavau. On the dee Active" from Lakemba, or you our Report for last with our accounts, orders, merous and copious com: the whole of which, togeour communications to the the Friendly Islands and 1 Wales, were lost, in consethe wreck of that vessel, on a y forty miles from this island. ccident has placed us in rather rtable circumstances, as we have rtunity of forwarding our orders South Wales for supplies, some al we are now in want of. It us pleasure to inform you that all Jard were saved, and returned to nba four days after the wreck. ceived the captain, mate, and super> to our houses, and spoke to the of in behalf of the crew. He promised upply them with food, and to take e of them, until a favourable opporaity of their leaving the island should resent itself. A month had not elapsed, hen four of them, of their own accord, and in spite of remonstrance, left Lakemba in a small boat, with the expectation of finding a vessel at one or other of the leeward group of islands. We regret to have to state that before they had been above thirty hours from the island, they were attacked by some Fegeeans in a canoe, and all killed, and report says, "eaten." We have not been able fully to ascertain the particulars of this affair. An opportunity has unexpectedly presented itself, by which the captain, and the other persons with us, are about to leave the island; and, although not a very favourable one for forwarding communications to you, we are unwilling to let it slip without informing you of our circumstances.

island for the Friendly Islands, yet we do not think a canoe a proper conveyance for important communications. On our arrival here, a canoe was about to sail for Tonga; she reached Oneata, remained there four months, and then returned to this island, where she now is. On May 2d, other canoes left for Tonga, which remained several months among the Fegee Islands, and we are uncertain whether they are still among them or

not. Another canoe left about five weeks ago; by her we sent various communications to the brethren in the Friendly Islands, an extract of which we think well to forward to you.

"From the experience which we have obtained since our arrival in Fegee, we are fully convinced that not many of the Fegeeans will embrace Christianity, until some Chief, less timid or more powerful than Tui Naeau lead the way. Tui Naeau is himself of this opinion, and we believe that nothing but the fear of man prevents him from becoming a worshipper of the true God. And although he wishes us to remain at Lakemba, yet he is desirous that one of us should visit Tanoa, and says, that when Tanoa, or any other powerful Chief embraces Christianity, he and his people will imitate his example. In consequence of this, we earnestly request the District Meeting to appoint for Fegee, for next year, two of the brethren now in the Friendly Islands; one to labour with Mr. Cargill at Lakemba, and the other to accompany Mr. Cross to Reua, the residence of Tanoa. We think that Reua is the place most suitable for a second Station, and that the people are fully prepared to receive Mis sionaries, and desire them. We he just received most cheering intellige from Joshua, whom we sent there ei; months ago, and who has now return You will be pleased to hear that he done very w having had fifty ma

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MISSIONS IN THE SOUTH SEAS.

THE FEGEE ISLANDS.

"An

As a proper sequel to the heart-stirring document, entitled, Appeal to the sympathy of the Christian Public on behalf of the Cannibal Fegeeans, published in our Number for February, pages 24-27, to which we most earnestly invite the renewed attention of our Readers, we insert the following Letters. They confirm the statements already made of the very encouraging prospects of eventual usefulness with which this infant Mission has been commenced; and powerfully enforce the necessity of sending an additional number of Christian Labourers into the field, without delay. This deeply-interesting subject now occupies the serious attention of the Committee; the result of whose deliberations will be stated in the Pcs:script of this Number.

FEGEE ISLANDS.—Extract of a Letter from the Rev. David Cargill, A. M., dated Lakemba, Sept. 14th, 1836.

As this opportunity of forwarding letters to England by Manilla is sudden and unexpected, I cannot accomplish my wish to prepare for you large letters and extracts. For the present, I must confine my remarks to general topics.

We enjoy a tolerable degree of prosperity in our families and in our work. My health is seldom interrupted, though frequently much affected by the heat, and the sudden and great transitions from heat to cold. Mrs. Cargill, though never very strong, has been blessed with better health during the last two months, than she has had since we left our native land. Our two children are well. For these great mercies we are thankful, and it is our wish to spend our strength in the service of our bountiful Benefactor.

The cause of God in this place, I am happy to say, is going forward. More than one hundred and fifty (principally Tonguese) meet in class, and many more listen to instruction. The king, Tui Naeau, has not yet openly embraced Christianity. Nevertheless, he is friendly to us, and speaks favourably of our.re

ligion. He has expressed an intention to worship the true God, when a Chief, moré powerful than himself, shall lead the way. He has very candidly acknowledged his weakness, and his fear to be the first of all the Fegeeans in abandoning the idolatry of their nation, and advises one of us to visit a more influential Chief. These things have induced us to resolve to commence a new Station at the earliest opportunity.

I hope you will take into your most favourable consideration our petition for Missionaries in the Fegees. Ten more could now be usefully employed. The population is numerous. Several influential Chiefs, having heard of Missionaries, desire to have them, that "they may become wise and good."

On this station we shall have to converse with and instruct the people in two languages, the Fegeean and Tonguese. The Fegeean is more copious and expressive than the Torguese. But my remarks on language, progress of translation, &c. &c., must be postponed till my next letter.

Extract of a Letter from the Rev. D. Cargill, A. M., to the Rev. John Beecham, dated Lakemba, Sept. 14th, 1836.

WE are about to commence a new Station in the Leeward group of the Fegee Islands. I am appointed to remain at Lakemba. If the Brethren in the Friendly Islands do not send us two additional Missionaries, I shall be alone. This will be a trial to me. O send us Colleagues; send us help! "At least one hundred thousand souls are perishing in Fegee for lack of knowledge." The establishment of the "Wesleyan Theo

When

logical Institution " has been hailed with great pleasure Will you not send us at least one of her sons to Fegee ? disposing of them, please not to pass over Fegee, as if we were lost sight of, in the obscurity of distance. No doubt you will have many petitions from Eastern India and other places; but Fegee, with its at least one hundred thousand " souls, must have some weight in the scale of comparative importance. It is true,

FEGEE ISLANDS.-Extract of a Letter from the Rev. Messrs. Cross and Cargill, dated Lakemba, Sept. 15th, 1836.

nearest to Lakemba is at least thirty miles from it. Ono is the most distant inhabited island of this group; it is perhaps one hundred and fifty miles from Lakemba; some of its inhabitants are said to have embraced Christianity.

"You will at once perceive the necessity of two Missionaries being at Reua ; but we may mention two reasons: first, the impropriety of appointing only one to commence a new Station in such a place as Fegee; and secondly, the great population of Reua; as we are informed by Tuboutoutai, that there are many settlements there, and that the place where the Chief resides contains as many inhabitants as there are in all Tongataboo.

"As we cannot attend the District Meeting, we request you earnestly to recommend to the notice of the Committee the following places, at each of which we are of opinion a new Station might now be successfully commenced, namely, Tausara, Bau, Somosomo, Mathuata, and Moala; at each of the above places the population is extensive. We are informed that there are nearly three hundred inhabited islands in the Fegee group, and that one island contains at least forty thousand inhabitants."

We think that an extract from a letter which we have just received from the Master of an American vessel will not be uninteresting to you, especially as the writer of it has been trading for many years among the Fegeeans, and has considerable knowledge of the islands and the people.

"Although an entire stranger, I have taken the liberty to address a few lines to you, per my tender the Pearl.' It was with great pleasure that I received the information that these long-negleeted and degraded people were at length visited by the heralds of the Gospel. You have undertaken an arduous task, and I sincerely wish you may speedily succeed in accomplishing it. There are on the islands at least one hundred thousand poor benight. ed Heathen: but may the darkness soon be dissipated, and the light of the Gospel shine in full refulgence!

"I am sorry that it is not in my power to see you, or render you any assistance, which I might be able; and being well aware that the common necessaries of life cannot be procured at Lakemba, I have taken the liberty to send you one half barrel of neats' tongues, which I hope you will accept."

MISSIONS IN THE WEST INDIES.

THE strong and exciting interest naturally produced by the Communications which it has frequently been our duty to place before our friends, in reference to various Missions of comparatively recent formation, will not, we are persuaded, induce them to regard with feelings at all approaching to indifference the older and now well-established and extensively successful operations of the Society in our various West Indian Colonies. These were our earliest Missionary enterprizes; and have been prosecuted with patient and laborious zeal, "through evil report and good report," for more than half a century. They were the special, though not the only legacy, bequeathed by Dr. Coke, of immortal Mis sionary memory, and his noble co-adjutors, to the care and piety of the Wesleyan Society; and the trust, involved in that bequest, has been faithfully executed. A glorious harvest of saved men has already been reaped; and one still more ample and mature may be humbly anticipated, as likely to reward, by the blessing of God, those enlarged operations, both evangelical and educational, which have been recently undertaken under the direction of the Society. This is the general impression produced on the minds of the Committee by the whole of its recent West-Indian correspondence; and the Selections which we now insert will confirm, we doubt not, in the opinion of our Readers, the sentiments already entertained of the value of these Missions, and of the diligence, fidelity, and self-denying activity of our Brethren by whom they are conducted. We invite particular attention to the valuable Letter of Mr. Corlett, respecting the Bahamas,-to the information contained in several of the Letters as to the preparations which are making

for extending Negro-Education by Mission-Schools,-to the noble manifestations of attachment to the Gospel, and of liberality in its support, exhibited by the Apprenticed Labourers of St. Vincent's, as reported by Mr. Cullingford,—and to various incidents which shew the increasing disposition of influential Gentlemen, in several Colonies, to befriend and assist the Missionaries in their work. The special thanks of the Committee are most respectfully tendered to His Excellency the Governor of Trinidad, and to the Council of that Colony, for their liberal Grant of One Hundred Pounds towards the Repairs of the Mission Chapel at Port-of-Spain, as stated in the Letter of Mr. Beard.

ANTIGUA.—Extract of a Letter from Mr. Thwaites, Superintendent of MissionSchools, dated Willoughby Bay, June 12th, 1837.

BAHAMAS.-Extract of a Letter from the Rev. J. Eacott, dated Eleuthera, September 10th, 1837.

As my brethren at Nassau have opportunities of sending, which I have not, -the vessels here being too much injured by the late gales to be sea-worthy,-you will, doubtless, have heard a full account of the devastation which the hurricanes have made in different parts of the Bahamas. Of their effects in other places I