THE following communication exhibits, in a clear and striking light, the great zeal and liberality of other Negro congregations in Jamaica :Extract of a Communication from the Rev. Lewis Lewis, recently returned from Jamaica.

Lucea. A new chapel, recently opened.

Oracabessa. A new chapel at Guy's

Hill.

Clarendon. The chapel under repair at Lime Savannah, and a large new one in the course of erection at Watsonton in Vere.

Savannah-la-Mar. Here the late laborious Missionary Lofthouse succeeded in the erection of an excellent chapel, a short time before his triumphant death. Stewart's-Town. A new chapel, and several improvements made in the Circuit.

DEATH OF THE REV. C. BATES,

AND APPEAL FOR MORE MISSIONARIES IN THE ANTIGUA DISTRICT.

LETTERS lately received from the Rev. James Cox and the Rev. Thomas Pearson, bring the mournful intelligence of the recent removal of another valuable labourer in the West-India field,—the Rev. Charles Bates. He died in Tortola, on the tenth day from the commencement of his illness, which was a bilious fever. It seems that the early symptoms were so flattering and favourable, that his medical attendant apprehended no danger, until two days before his decease. He was, we believe, in the eighteenth year of his Missionary ministry, which was exclusively exercised in Newfoundland, and in the West Indies. He died greatly respected by all classes of the community in Tortola. His "end was peace." His language was, "I am on the Rock Christ Jesus. I cleave to God;" and he frequently repeated those lines :

"Lord, I believe thy precious blood,
Which, at the mercy-seat of God,
For ever doth for sinners plead,

For me, even for my soul, was shed."

Thus another case of urgent necessity for an additional and immediate supply of Missionary labourers has providentially arisen. On this subject we recommend to the serious attention of our friends the following touching extracts from the letter of Mr. Pearson :

TORTOLA.-Extract of a Letter from the Rev. Thomas Pearson, dated RoadTown, December 17th, 1841.

AND now I am left alone on this island, without any hope of help until the District-Meeting. I must travel over these mountains, and contend with the waves of the sea, preach, administer the sacraments, renew the tickets, marry, bury, draw up the Society and School Reports, and make out all the accounts for the year, which will soon close. Well, thank God for health of body, and a desire to act, and think, and speak for him! I wish my short day (for I know it is but short) to be spent in doing good, "my night in prayer and praise." I am endeavouring to live with death continually in view; for I am quite convinced that, if more Missionaries are not soon appointed to this District, [the Antigua District,] many of us will soon be num

From Mr. Cox's letter, also, we import :

bered with the silent dead. We shall not be able to endure such labour long. No less than three of our number have died within the last twelve months. O may I be ready to

"Clap my glad wings and soar away,

And mingle with the blaze of day!" While our life is continued, we cannot give up stations on which our sanctuaries stand, and our societies are formed. But help we must have, and that soon, or it will be too late. "O Lord, arise, and maintain thine own cause.' " I shall continue to do all I can on this important station until the District-Meeting. hope that you will soon be enabled to send out more labourers. We beg an interest in your prayers.

I

extract a few sentences of similar

ST. KITT'S.-Extract of a Letter from the Rev. James Cox, dated St. Kitt's, December 24th, 1841.

IT has pleased God again to visit us with his rod ! We have stroke upon stroke. [This refers to the death of Mr. Bates.] May the good Lord stay his hand, and show mercy to this District ! I have already urged so earnestly our plea for three Missionaries, that I trust I have only to give you the above melancholy statement, to induce a compliance with our request. If you cannot send us three, send us two.

Be merciful to those of us who remain ! How soon may we be called hence !If the expense of outfit is your hinderance, I will agree to pay the amount of outfit for a single man for St. Kitt's. Do, Sirs, send one; and let me know, on receipt of this, that you will do so. We have only local brethren just sufficient to supply our places; and if one be sick, one place must be without a Preacher.

RECENT MISCELLANEOUS INTELLIGENCE.

ASHANTEE.

ARRIVAL OF THE REV. MESSRS. FREEMAN AND BROOKING AT

KUMASI.

NONE of the Missions of this Society, we believe, is regarded with more intense interest and anxiety, an interest and anxiety evinced, we trust, not only by special and liberal contributions on its behalf, but by fervent and continual prayer to God,-than that recently undertaken to Ashantee. We therefore hasten to communicate the following intelligence :

Extract of a Letter from the Rev. S. A. Shipman, dated Cape-Coast Castle, November 9th, 1841.

HAVING but a very short notice of the sailing of the "New Times," I simply write to state, that Messrs. Freeman and Brooking left this for Kumási on Saturday last, the 6th instant, accompanied by the two Ashantee Princes. They were all in the enjoyment of good health and spirits, and are daily commended by us all to the blessing and protection of God our heavenly Father. As the suspicions and jealousies of the King appear greatly removed, no delay is expected from him, such as Mr. Freeman experienced before; but they hope to arrive in Extract of a Letter from the Rev. John Watson, dated December 24th, 1841.

Kumási in a fortnight from the time of leaving Cape-Coast.

THE Rev. Messrs. Freeman and Brooking entered Kumási, the capital of Ashantee, on Monday, the 13th instant; though no letters have been received from them since their arrival. I saw an Ashantee at Elmina on the 21st instant, who was in Kumási when they arrived, and left it on the evening of the same day for the Coast. The "African Queen" sails this day at four o'clock;

You will be aware that the societies on the Coast are now left under the care of Mr. Watson and myself. We have both, especially of late, been the subjects of much affliction, and are not yet able to undertake our work fully. Our health, however, is improving daily, as the latter rains have ceased, and the fine weather is setting in. Mrs. Shipman continues also to enjoy better health. We expect and are looking for a reinforcement soon.

and it will probably be three weeks or a month before another vessel leaves the Coast for England. Mr. and Mrs. Shipman, and myself, are all quite well, and enjoying excellent health and spirits. The former are intended to remain here, and the latter is expected to become the colleague of Mr. Brooking when Mr. Freeman returns, which will probably be very shortly.

We surely need not urge upon the friends of Africa the duty of solemn and unceasing supplication for the preservation and success of these devoted servants of Christ.

ARRIVAL OF MISSIONARIES IN WESTERN AFRICA.

GAMBIA.

WITH much thankfulness to Almighty God, we learn, by letters from Mr. Fox and Mr. Symons, that the Missionaries Symons, Roston, and Annear, arrived, safe and well, at St. Mary's on the Gambia, on the 20th of December, after a passage of thirty-nine days from London. Mr. Symons remains at the Gambia Mission. Messrs. Roston and Annear, with Mr. May, a native Schoolmaster, sailed for Sierra-Leone, on the 1st of January.

Great disappointment and regret are very naturally expressed by Mr. Fox, on finding that, on account of the Society's want of funds, only one Missionary, instead of the three desired and expected, had been for the present sent to the Gambia stations. We deem it an act of justice to give his own words :

Extract of a Letter from the Rev. William Fox, dated Gambia,
January 13th, 1842.

I HOPE that poor Gambia will not be forgotten by the Committee amidst their very numerous applications for help. I know that Sierra-Leone and Cape-Coast need assistance; and I deeply sympathize with Mr. Freeman in all his bereavements and trials. But the River Gambia too is in Africa; and I still

maintain that it is one of the most important, direct, and safe entrances into the interior of this vast and as yet comparatively unknown continent. Send us sufficient help, and, ere many years have elapsed, you will, I trust, have a Missionary station at the great emporium of Africa, TIMBUCTOO.

SAFE RETURN OF THE REV. JOHN WATERHOUSE FROM POLYNESIA TO HOBART-TOWN.

Ar length we have the grateful task of stating, that highly-interesting communications have arrived from this truly apostolical Missionary, dated Hobart-Town, Van-Diemen's Land, September 24th, September 30th, October 9th, and October 12th, 1841.

also received fifty-three pages of a closely-written Journal of Mr. Waterhouse's second voyage to the Polynesian Islands; and about thirty more pages are promised by the next vessel. When the whole shall have arrived, they will furnish large materials for publication, of which we shall avail ourselves as soon as possible, and which will be found to be of the most heart-stirring character. We have now room only to state, that Mr. Waterhouse reached his home and family about the middle of September last, after an absence of eighteen months, with the exception of six weeks in the months of September and October, 1840, during which he was engaged in holding the District-Meeting in VanDiemen's Land. His second hazardous series of Polynesian voyages and visitations commenced October 28th, 1840, when he went on board of the Wesleyan Missionary ship "Triton," and visited, successively, New South Wales, New-Zealand,-Eua, Tonga, Haabai, Vavou, and other stations in the Friendly Islands,-Nina Tobu-tabu, (Keppel's Island,) Nina-fo-ou, Uvca, (Wallis's Island,) and Rotumah, and, lastly, the Feejee group, where he landed on the 14th of June. His reports of the state of the work of God at these several stations are, on the whole, very satisfactory; though, of course, in places so many, and whose circumstances are so various, and yet peculiar, a General Superintendent of Mr. Waterhouse's experience and discrimination

could not fail to discover, occasionally, some cause for efforts at improvement, while he found much and frequent reason for exclaiming, with wonder and thankfulness, "What hath God wrought!" The Tonga Mission was soon resumed, after the calamitous interruption occasioned by the open and furious hostilities of the heathen Chiefs, described in the "Notices" for January, 1841. A sort of armed truce has been maintained; and, among the Christian part of the population, under the rule of King Josiah Tubou, and the powerful protection and active co-operation of King George of Vavou, the ordinances of divine worship, and the preaching of the Gospel, have been duly observed, a signal religious revival has taken place, and the very island for which we had feared the worst, appears now to present some of the most hopeful prospects of great eventual success. We regret to state, that the excellent Mr. and Mrs. Tucker were in such bad and failing health, that they were under the necessity of returning with Mr. Waterhouse, by way of Feejee, to Hobart-Town; where, however, they had very considerably improved, at the date of the last accounts. Their loss will be seriously felt in the Friendly Islands. Mr. Waterhouse's own health has been, on the whole, tolerably good, though he has had several temporary illnesses, the natural result of the severe labours and frequent privations and perils to which he was exposed. That his visits to the several Missions will, by God's blessing, be productive of incalculable and permanent good, we feel quite persuaded. He states himself to be, though much fatigued, "well and hearty;" and his letters evince an admirable spirit of Christian heroism, zeal, and devotedness. The Missionary ship "Triton" has been found to be of essential service in every point of view. Mr. Waterhouse strongly urges the utility, and indeed the absolute necessity, if this great work is to be properly carried on and extended, of a provision for instructing and training some of the best of the Native Teachers, on whom so much depends; and we are happy to learn, that some steps have been already taken to secure this indispensable means of permanent success at Feejee, under the direction of Mr. Hunt, and in the Friendly Islands, under that of Mr. Francis Wilson both of whom were formerly Students in the Wesleyan Theological Institution.

:

CHRISTMAS JUVENILE OFFERINGS FOR 1841.

On this subject, we re-call the special attention of our friends to an article at pages 259-261 of the "Notices" for March; and respectfully request that the whole of it should be publicly read by the Ministers in every chapel where this noble effort was made, as a just tribute of grateful acknowledgment, on the part of the Committee, to the Collectors and contributors. The amount, it will be seen, was £4,721. 7s. 4d.; and additions have recently been made to that sum.

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS OF THE SOCIETY FOR 1841.

We invite attention also to the article with this heading, published at pages 261 and 262 of the "Notices" for March. We are unspeakably delighted and thankful to be able to announce that, since the printing of that article, its best anticipations have been more than realized. It is now ascertained,–