person there to solicit in favor of the College. What may be the next step on this unhappy occasion I cannot say till our trustees shall meet. As this is an affair intended purely and simply to promote the religion of the blessed Jesus, and to deliver people from the ignorance and follies so blended with human nature, [Here the manuscript ends.] RELIGIOUS INTELLIGENCE. FIFTH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS. THE Board met according to appointment, at the Philosophical Chamber of Yale College, on Thursday, September 15, 1814, at 10 o'clock, A. M. Present, The Hon ELIAS BOUDINOT, Esq. L. L. D. Hon. JOHN TREADWELL, Esq. L. L. D. Rev. JOSEPH LYMAN, D. D. Rev. SAMUEL SPRING, D. D. Hon. JOHN HOOKER, Esq. Rev. JEDIDIAH MORSE, D. D. Rev. JAMES RICHARDS, Rev. SAMUEL WORCESTER, D. D. The Vice President opened the meeting with prayer. The following gentlemen were chosen officers for the year ensu ing: viz. The Hon. JOHN TREADWELL, Esq. President. The Rev. Dr. SPRING, Vice President. The Rev. Dr. SPRING, The Rev. Dr. WORCESTER, and Prudential Committee.f Mr. EVARTS, The Rev. Dr. WORCESTER, Corresponding Secretary. Mr. EVARTS, Treasurer; and Mr. CHESTER ADAMS, Auditor. Voted, That the thanks of this Board be presented to William Bartlet, Esq. for his services as a member of the Prudential Com The Rev. Dr. Dwight was prevented, by College business, from attending till near the close of the meeting. † William Bartlet, Esq. declined a re-election. Charles Walley, Esq. who was chosen Auditor last year, declined accepting the office. mittee, and for the generous entertainment which, on several occasions, he has afforded the Prudential Committee. The Hon. Elias Boudinot communicated an extract from a letter, stating an earnest request from the Delaware Indians, that missionaries be sent among them; which extract was referred to the Prudential Committee. Voted, That it is the opinion of this Board, that the independent and unevangelized tribes of Indians, occupying their own lands, whether without or within the limits stated in the treaty of peace between the United State sand Great Britain, are, with other objects, embraced by the Act of their Incorporation. The Prudential Committee exhibited their Report, which was accepted. At 3 o'clock P. M. public divine service was attended, in the Church of the United Society, and a sermon was delivered by the Rev. Mr. Richards, from Eph. iii, 8: Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ. Voted, That the thanks of this Board he presented to the Rev. Mr. Richards for his sermon delivered this day; and that a copy thereof be requested for publication. The Hon. Mr. Boudinot and the Rev. Dr. Davis were appointed a Committee to carry the foregoing vote into effect. The printing of the sermon was referred to the Prudential Committee. Voted, To request De Lauzun Deforest, Esq. to audit the Treas urer's accounts for the year now closed. Friday, Sept. 16. The Rev. Dr. Davis opened the meeting with prayer. The Treasurer's accounts were exhibited, as examined and certified by the Auditor, and accepted. Voted, That the next annual meeting be holden at Salem, Mass. on the third Wednesday of Sept. 1815, at 10 o'clock, A. M. The Rev. Mr. Chapin was chosen preacher for that meeting, and the Rev. Dr. Davis second preacher. Voted, That the Recording Secretary transmit to every member of the Board information of the time and place of the next annual meeting. 1 The following bye-law was adopted, in addition to chapter 2nd, section 1st, of the Bye-laws: If, in the opinion of the Prudential Committee, it shall at any time be dangerous to the health of the members of the Board, or on any other account highly inexpedient, to meet at the place appointed for any annual meeting, the Prudential Committee are au thorized to appoint some other place for such meeting, by giving notice of such place to the Recording Secretary, in season for him to give notice to each member of the Board. Voted, That the thanks of this Board be presented to the Presi dent and Fellows of Yale College, for the convenient accommodation afforded them, during their present session, in the PhilosophVOL. X. 58 Chamber appertaining to said College; and that the Recording Secretary transmit a copy of this vote to the President. Voted, That the Prudential Committee be directed to prepare and publish the annual report of the Board, including such parts of the Report of the Prudential Committee as they shall judge most useful, an abstract of the Treasurer's accounts, a statement of donations, and such other information as they shall deem proper and expedient. The Rev. Dr. Lyman closed the session with prayer. The preceding account is compiled from the original minutes of the Recording Secretary, with the omission of such particulars as might be uninteresting to readers generally. REPORT OF THE PRUDENTIAL COMMITTEE. BRETHREN, THE last annual Report of your Committee left our missionaries in the East, on the mighty waters, uncertain where they should land, and still more doubtful where they should abide. During the year great solicitude has been felt for them; but at length that solicitude is considerably relieved. For a long season they were held in anxious suspense, painfully fluctuating between fear and hope; but at length that suspense appears to have come nearly to an end. Our last letters from them were received by the way of England about ten days ago; the latest date from Mr. Newell being the 20th of last December, at Columbo, in the Island of Ceylon; and from Messrs. Hall and Nott, the 23d of the same month, at Bombay. The principal facts and circumstances, related in their several communications, your Committee will report in order. Messrs. Hall and Nott, as reported at our last anniversary, left Calcutta on the 20th of November, 1812, under circumstances not very pleasant, and embarked for Bombay, expecting to touch at Ceylon, and doubtful whether they should proceed any further. It appears, however, that they touched not at Ceylon, but at Pondicherry, where they staid about five weeks. The reason of this they probably assigned in a letter written at Pondicherry, to which in a subsequent letter they refer, but which has not been received. They arrived at Bombay on the 11th of February, 1813, about cleven weeks after leaving Calcutta. On their arrival, they immediately found that intelligence concerning them, forwarded from Calcutta, had reached Bombay; intelligence, disadvantageous to them, and accompanied with an expression of the will of the su preme government, that they should be sent to England. They were permitted to submit to Sir Evan Nepean governor of Bombay, a very respectful and judicious memorial; which, together with accompanying documents, declared the views with which they came to India-made known the patronage and instructions * See Appendix A.. under which they had been sent forth gave a narrative of their proceedings at Calcutta-explained the misunderstanding which had arisen between them and the supreme government there, and the reasons of their departing thence for Bombay, under circumstances so liable to misconstruction-referred their case to the well known clemency and candor of the Governor, and implored his favor and protection. Their memorial was very kindly received and considered; and every thing relating to their object and their proceedings appeared to the Governor in so satisfactory a light, that he not only allowed them to remain for the present at Bombay, but assured them of his disposition to render them every favor in his power; and even took upon himself the trouble to write a private letter in their hehalf to Lord Minto, the governor general at Calcutta, with a view to remove the unfavorable impressions respecting them, which had been made on his Lordship's mind, either by misrepresentations or unexplained circumstances, and to obtain permission for them to reside at Bombay, or to go, unmolested, in pursuit of their object elsewhere. Thus encouraged, the two brethren sat down to the study of the Mahratta language, under the tuition of a Brahmin; in the hope of having the satisfaction, in due time, of preaching in that language to the natives at Bombay, and in the extensive and populous regions, in which the language is vernacular. Sir Evan Nepean's letter appears to have been successful in satisfying the governor general's mind in regard to the character and proceedings of the two missionaries. The war, however, between the United States and Great Britain, intelligence of which had been received in India, gave rise to new difficulties. On the 25th of June the brethren were informed, by Dr. Taylor, a gentleman from whom they received many friendly offices, that the Governor, Sir Evan Nepean, had expressed his fears that, on account of the war, he should be under the necessity of sending them to England; though, as they state in their journal, "the Governor expressed to Dr. Taylor his firm confidence in their integrity, and the excellency of the character of those gentlemen by whom they were patronized" On the 18th of August, by the advice of a Mr. Money, another. gentleman to whom they were indebted for many offices of kindness, they drew up another memorial to the Governor, which was to be presented along with certain documents of a purport to shew decisively, that their mission had no connexion with the war. Mr. Money, they say, "urged us to do this immediately, as he had observed our Lames down at the marine office as passengers to England on the Caarmarthen, which was to have sated about this time, Lut having sprung a leak will be detained a month or two." Fron this memorial, that something of the spirit and feelings of the brethren may be perceived and felt, the following passages are ex tracted: "Right Honorable Sir, "When we consider that both English and American Christians are interested in our success-that already much time and money, have been expended in our enterprise, and that much more must be expended if we are sent from this place;-that we must then be in perfect uncertainty, whether we shall ever be allowed to preach to the destitute the unsearchable riches of Christ;-and especially when we consider the command of that ascending Lord, in whom we all hope, and whom we would obey;—we feel justified, we feel compelled, by motives which we dare not resist, to intreat your Excellency's favor. To ourselves it cannot but be supposed, that to fail in our object must be in the highest degree trying. Our feelings are deeply interested, it may well be supposed, in our object, to which we have been looking for so many years-for which we have left our country, our prospects, and our dearest friendsto which we are conscientiously, and, by the help of God, unaltera! bly devoted-in which the hearts of Christians are universally engaged, without distinction of country, and which, we cannot doubt, is under the favorable eye of our Lord and Master." "Your Excellency's well known desire for promoting Christian knowledge, and the certainty that we should be in future as really under the direction and at the disposal of your Excellency, as at the present moment, encourage us in requesting that we may be allowed to remain, at least till it may be learned whether there will be a speedy termination of the unhappy war." en On the next day they write, "Having prepared the preceding memorial, we went with it to Mr. Money, being desirous to for ward it as soon as possible, on account of a report which we last evening heard, that we were to go to England on the Sir Godfrey Webster, to sail on Sabbath next. At breakfast with Mr. Money, we saw the superintendant of embarkation, who told us, that he had, by order of the Governor, yesterday settled every arrange. ment for our going in the Sir Godfrey Webster, and that every pains had been taken to make us comfortable, and that we had been provided for suitably to our ministerial character. We were much distressed by this intelligence, and especially as we were entirely unprepared for such a voyage. Mr. Money immediately waited on the Governor, to tell him our unprepared state, and to hand him the above petition. On his return he informed us, that the Governor's orders from Bengal were such, that he would be unable to allow us to remain; but, as he was unwilling to put us to any inconvenience, he would allow us to stay until the sailing of the Caarmarthen, which is to be in about six weeks. We then waited on the Governor ourselves, and expressed our thanks for his kindness now, and on former occasions. He told us, that he had supposed us prepared on the ground of what he had told Dr. Taylor; and endeavored to justify the Supreme Government in sending us away on account of the war. He declared his perfect confidence that we were innocent and harmless men, whose weapons of warfare were not carnal but spiritual. He likewise told us that he had succeeded in removing the unfavorable impressions which had been made on the mind of the Governor General, to effect which he had written to Lord Minto a private letter. Thus |