the earth, by the simple instrumentality of the word of God. If the scene was to be enacted again, give them the sword of the Spirit, and they would conquer a third time. The Saviour who gave the Bible would conquer by the Bible, when reason and man's philosophy had sunk into the darkness they deserved.

The meeting was addressed also by the Bishop of Worcester, several other ministers, and by Sir T. D. Ackland.

SUNDAY SCHOOL UNION.

The annual meeting of the Sunday School Union was held on Thursday, the 5th instant. The large hall was densely crowded. The chair was taken by Capt. Moorsom, R.N. The report was read by the Secretary. It commenced by referring to the society's operations in Denmark, Belgium, France, Corfu, Sierra Leone, Central India, Van Dieman's Land, New Zealand, West Indies, America, and Canada. With respect to the home proceedings, it stated, that 22 grants had been made during the last year, in aid of the expence of erecting or fitting up school rooms, amounting to £403, making the total number of grants, up to the present time, 211, amounting to £4,819. These grants had been made, without any respect to denominational distinctions. Three new local unions had been formed; viz., the South West Kent, Dudley and Stockton. The number of Sunday school lending libraries granted had been 126, making a total of 859. The Union had thus sustained a pecuniary loss of £310 5s. The schools assisted contained 13,806 children, of whom 6,856 were able to read the Scriptures. Grants of money amounting to £110, and of books to the sum of £261 16s. 6d., had been made in order to promote the extension of Sunday schools in this and other countries. There were within a circle of five miles from the general post office, 487 schools, 9,507 teachers, 89,139 scholars. Being an increase of six schools, 596 teachers, and 2,808 scholars. The sales of publications at the depository amounted to £9,554 1s. 54d., being an increase of £413 17s. 7d. on the sales of the previous year. Donations had been received to the amount of £344. After payment of the grants which had been already made, there would be a deficiency of £219 2s. 7 d.

RELIGIOUS TRACT SOCIETY.

The anniversary meeting of the Religious Tract Society was held on the 6th instant. The right hon. the Earl of CHICHESTER presided on the occasion. After an appropriate opening speech had been delivered by the Chairman,— the SECRETARY (Mr. Jones) proceeded to read the forty-third annual report, from which it appeared that although the warlike operations in China had somewhat interfered with, it had not stopped, the circulation of the society's publications in that interesting field, where new channels for distribution had been opened, and were prospering under the auspices of the Rev. Mr. Gutzlaff. In Aracan 40,000 tracts had been distributed in fifteen days. In India the circulation had been a great means of advancing the kingdom of Christ. In the Mahratta country, Dr. Wilson and Mr. Mitchell reported that they found many who had been led into a belief of the Christian faith solely by the perusal of the religious tracts and publications of the society. In Australia and Van Dieman's Land 161,000 publications, value £2,638, had been transmitted and put in circulation. In Western Africa the education of the negroes was rapidly progressing, and letters had been received from the society's missionaries, desiring to be furnished with 2,000 more copies of the Cottage Hymn Book which had been sent out, and another letter received for 3,000 copies more. The whole of the first issue had been purchased by the people in the short space of nine months. The gates of Spanish America were comparatively closed against the admission of Scriptural truth, but still 11,600 Spanish publications had been granted to the different correspondents of the society in that quarter.

To the West Indies, 55,000 books and tracts, without including publications sent for sale, had been granted. In British North America, 163 religious circulating libraries, valued at £852, had been established, and 206,900 tracts, books, and publications, had been sent out. The intelligence received from Montreal, Quebec, Kingston, and Toronto, was of a most cheering and interesting character. In France the work of the Lord was evidently advancing, though it encountered much opposition. The circulation in France amounted to 600,000 copies. In Hungary, 40,000 copies, printed in the German language, had been distributed. In Belgium the society went on prosperously, though strongly opposed by the priests of the Romish Church. The number of new publications during the last year was 220; the total publications was 16,469,551, which, published in eighty-six different languages, gave a total circulation of 357,000,000 different works. The total benevolent income for the year was £5,826, being an increase beyond the preceding year of £164; the total sales of the society's publications was £45,635. The gratuitous issues for the year was £8,329, and the society's total receipts, including the proceeds of sale, was £56,014 18s. 1d.

BRITISH AND FOREIGN SCHOOL SOCIETY.

The thirty-seventh annual meeting of the British and Foreign School Society, took place on the 9th instant. The meeting was numerously attended. Lord John Russell presided.

His Lordship said—The British and Foreign School commenced in 1808. The National Society was begun in 1811. They would, therefore, see from that and the other instances to which he had alluded, that exertions made in a right way were never thrown away. Those who had followed their operations had made less progress, because they insisted that certain formularies should be taught the children; the consequence of which was the exclusion-and as he thought the unnecessary exclusion-of large numbers, who were thus deprived of the benefit of them. It seemed that they were more anxious that they should not become Presbyterians or Dissenters than that they should become Christians. The want of education throughout the kingdom generally was great and lamentable, as was apparent from the parliamentary reports, particularly the gaol returns, from which it appeared that, in instance after instance, out of a hundred prisoners sixty or seventy were ignorant of the name of God or Jesus Christ. One could not help wondering that such profound ignorance could exist in this country; but they should not confine themselves to wondering-it was their bounden duty to endeavour not to allow such heathenish ignorance to continue.

Mr. DUNN (the Secretary) then read the report, from which it appeared that the Society was progressing prosperously. The average attendance of boys in the model school was 682, and of girls 450, making the total number on the books 52,828. The training school was carried on with undiminished efficiency. The new buildings were rapidly approaching completion; but in that fund there was a deficiency of £5000, for which the committee confidently looked to their friends and the public. In the state of the finances generally there was no ground for discouragement. The expenditure during the past year had been greater than usual, but the subscriptions were great in proportion. There was evidently a wider and deeper interest pervading all classes of society.

WESLEYAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY.

The annual meeting of the above Society was held on Monday, May 2; Colonel Conolly in the chair. The Rev. Dr. Bunting read the report, from which it appeared that the receipts amounted to £101,688 2s. 4d., and the expenditure to £98,745 7s. 9d.; leaving a surplus of £2,933 14s. 7d. The net increase of the year, as compared with the preceding, is £11,505 13s. 8d. The present

number of princpial or central mission stations, called circuits, occupied by the Society in the several parts of the world, is 261; the number of Missionaries employed, exclusive of catechists, 368; the number of full and accredited Church members, exclusive of those under the care of the Society's Missionaries in Ireland, 87,258; and the number of scholars in the mission schools is nearly 60,000.

CHURCH MISSIONARY SOCIETY.

The annual meeting of the above Society was held on the 3rd instant. The Earl of Chichester took the chair, supported by the Bishop of Ripon, the Bishop of Chester, the Bishop of Norwich, and a large body of the clergy of the Church of England. The report detailed at great length the operations of the Society in various parts of the world during the past year. The labours of the Missionaries have, it appears, been highly successful in India and in Africa, as well as in New Zealand, and the other colonies of Great Britain. The total amount of the receipts for the year was £90,821, and of the expenditure £110,808, leaving a deficiency of £19,987.

LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY.

The forty-eighth anniversary of this Institution was held on the 5th instant; the attendance was very numerous. The Hon. W. F. CowPER, M.P. took the chair, and briefly introduced the business of the meeting.

The Rev. A. TIDMAN then read an abstract of the report, which contained numerous facts, showing that the state and progress of the Society in the past year, both at home and abroad, had been most encouraging. The total amount of income received during the year had been £80,874 Os. 2d.; the total expenditure £87,551 9s. 11d.; leaving a deficiency, as compared with the outlay, of £6,677 9s. 9d.

The Right Hon. Sir GEORGE GREY, Bart., M.P., moved the first resolution, which was seconded by the Rev. Dr. BYRTH.

"That the report, of which an abstract has been read, be approved, printed, and circulated. That this meeting reviews, with hallowed joy, the progress of the Missionary cause, through the agency of the London Missionary Society, during the past year, in the advancement of civilization and social happiness, among tribes and nations once the victims of gross ignorance and hateful passions; in the extended education of the young, both in useful and sacred knowledge; in the translation and circulation of the Holy Scriptures in the dialects of Polynesia, India, and Africa; in the numerous striking conversions of the heathen to the faith of Christ; and in the general purity, order, and activity of the Mission Churches. But this meeting, deeply sensible that such glorious results of an agency, feeble and imperfect, must be attributed exclusively to the grace of the exalted Saviour, through the power of the Holy Spirit, humbly and gratefully ascribes to Him the honour and the praise."

BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY.

The fiftieth anniversary of this Society was held on the 28th of April. H. Kelsall, Esq. in the chair.

The Rev. J. ANGUS read the report which stated, that the Society had to deplore the decease of its senior Secretary, and of several of its Missionaries. Opposition had been experienced from some of the agents in India, of the "Society for the propagation of the Gospel," who had not hesitated to stigmatize all ministers who have not received, what they designate episcopal ordination, as intruders into the office of ministers of the Gospel, and their ministrations as unlawful. Much good has however been effected. The number of members in Jamaica is about 30,000,-about 7,000 in the Day schools, and 12,000 more in the Sunday Schools.

The total receipts for the year amounted to £22,727: the expenditure to £24,712. The number of persons added to the churches was 5,654; the total number of members in all the churches being 32,899. There are 167 stations, 77 Missionaries, besides 47 female Missionaries and 70 native preachers. Number of Day schools 148, School matrons 170, children under instruction in Day schools 10,292, and in the Sabbath schools about 15,000; the number of volumes of the Scriptures printed during the year was 85,000.

LONDON CIRCUIT.

On Tuesday, the 17th of May, a very neat small Wesleyan Methodist Association chapel was opened, at Bromley, Kent. Sermons were preached by Mr. R. Eckett and Mr. E. Pearson: Mr. M. Johnson of Leeds, and Mr. Barton, took part in the devotional services. The chapel was well filled at both of the services; and the collections were liberal. On the following Sabbath the opening services were continued, and sermons preached by Mr. J. Š. Featherstone and Mr. J. Cropp.

"Whether we live, we live unto the Lord; whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's."-Rom. xiv. 8.

WESLEYAN METHODIST ASSOCIATION

Quarterly Missionary Notices.

JUNE, 1842.

JAMAICA.

Ir will be most gratifying to the members and friends of our Connexion to learn, that Mr. and Mrs. Pennock, and Mr. and Mrs. Baxter with their children, have safely arrived at Jamaica, after a long voyage; during a considerable part of which they were exposed to much suffering: they had to contend with adverse winds and storms for a long time-part of the ship's cargo of water was lost, some of the water casks breaking by the force of the waves, which broke upon their vessel; and they were unable to go to bed for about three weeks: some time before the end of the voyage, the ship's stock of fresh provisions was exhausted, and they were reduced to short allowance of water. However by the mercy of God they safely arrived at Jamaica, on the 8th of March, being that day, two months after they had sailed from Liverpool.

In a letter which Mr. Pennock has sent to Mr. Eckett, bearing date the 24th of March, he says,-"I wonder that we are now alive and free from disease, as I thank God we all now are. Our reception here by our dear people and friends was joyous in the highest degree: the heartcheering scenes which presented themselves on our entering the harbour and landing exceed description. Thousands upon thousands of our people and others were assembled to welcome us, which they did in the most affectionate and rapturous manner. Songs of praise and loud huzzahs, with music playing, flags flying, and handkerchiefs waving, were the manifested tokens of joy and affection with which we were received.

Mr. Baxter has preached several times, and I am happy to say, that his preaching talents and kind demeanour towards our people, are raising him rapidly in the affection and estimation of the members of our society and friends. I shall write you more fully by the next packet. I find our church affairs in a much better state than I expected."

The following letter from Mr. Baxter to the President of the Association will also be read with much interest.

DEAR SIR,

Having through the tender mercy of God, arrived in safety at our destination, I lose no time in communicating to you this circumstance, along with a few of the incidents of our tedious, and somewhat perilous, passage.

We left Liverpool on the 8th of January, with a fair wind. The breeze continued to waft us onward till we were off Holyhead, when it veered round and blew right ahead. To the captain it appeared impossible for us to

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