It appears from a letter of the Rev. Mr. | not be formed for the purpose, composed Poore, of Melbourne, Australia, dated of the several evangelical denominations July 16, 1855, and published in the in and near Melbourne. A circular was Chronicle for December last, that in the printed and sent to the evangelical minoutset of this movement he received from isters, stating the case, asking what is Hongkong two thousand copies of the Christian duty, and inviting them to New Testament in Chinese. But, inas- meet and consider the matter. Repremuch as the Chinese emigrants ordina- sentatives came together from all the rily pass only two or three days in Mel- denominations, all were cordial, and the bourne on their way to the mines, pro- Chinese young men were welcomed with curing for themselves the requisite outfit, joy. It was agreed that something must it was thought that they would be un- be done, and a committee was appointed willing to burden themselves with books, to make arrangements for a public meeteven if given to them gratuitously, of ing to be held the next week. The time whose value they knew nothing. In of meeting arrived; five hundred pressview of this difficulty, the books for a ed into the hall, and it was supposed season remained on hand. At length, that a thousand more were excluded for however, Mr. Poore ventured to send to want of room. Another meeting was Castlemaine, in the neighborhood of the appointed to be held the following week mines, a box containing two hundred of to designate the missionaries to their the Testaments. Shortly afterwards, a work. At this meeting there was an imparagraph appeared in the shipping in- mense attendance, and every thing passtelligence of the newspapers, announced off satisfactorily. The service partook ing that two Chinese evangelists had arrived from Hongkong, with letters introductory to Rev. J. L. Poore. On finding the young men, Mr. Poore learned that they had been under the care of Dr. Legge, a missionary in Hongkong, more than ten years; that they were persons of undoubted piety and of considerable literary attainments. They both speak English readily. Ho-a-Low has a scholarly knowledge of the Canton dialect, and is able to translate Chinese into English and English into Chinese. He is twenty years of age, and nephew of a Chinese preacher in Hongkong. Chua-Luk is twenty-three, and the son also of a pious man, and a member of a church at Hongkong. They had been advised to go to Australia, because, on account of the insurrection, free evangelical labor in China is for the present greatly restricted. It was hoped that they might be useful as interpreters, or be engaged as evangelists to their countrymen. But there was no society to sustain them with its funds, and no feel-mittee of control was appointed, auxiling of interest existed on their behalf.

In this exigency the question was suggested whether a general Society might

very much of the nature of a regular missionary ordination, though the young men, for prudential reasons, were only styled Scripture-readers or lay-agents. After reading the Scriptures, prayer and an address, Ho and Chu were introduced by Mr. Poore, who received their profession of Christianity and motives for wishing to teach their countrymen, and charged them to be earnest and faithful. Deep and fervent feeling was manifested, and all augured well. Mr. Young, a missionary of the London Missionary Society, temporarily absent from his station in China, and staying in Australia for the benefit of his health, was engaged by the committee to enter also into their service for the welfare of the Chinese population, with an understanding that the requisite funds were to be secured for the support of the two assistants and himself. At Castlemaine, which is in the more immediate neighborhood of the labors to be undertaken, a meeting was held to bid them God-speed, and a com

iary to the committee at Melbourne.

It said that the Chinese are viewed among the miners with feelings of preju

dice; but the whole Christian commu- Choo; but that Dr. Bettelheim, who is
nity seems to be pervaded with a tender a Hungarian Jew, a physician, his wife
concern for their salvation. Hence it being a native of England, had taken up
was that in so short a time, and without his abode there, receiving his support
any previous arrangement, so happy an from the British Naval Missionary Soci-
issue was reached. The agents are now ety. Dr. Bettelheim reached Loo Choo
at their work, fully equipped for their May 2, 1846. In the News of the
duty; Mr. Young labors among the Ho- Churches," we find the following ad-
kien people, Amoy district, Ho and Chu ditional information.
among the Canton men, who are by far
the most numerous. They have at their
command two thousand Testaments, ma-
ny Christians interested in their work
and praying for them, an open door, and
no adversary to resist their efforts.-
Every expense thus far has been met;
and should God seem still to smile on the
work, two more native Christians will be
sent for from Hongkong, that the work
may be pushed into the gold fields wher-
ever the Chinese are found.

Who can calculate the results, should the Chinese from the mines of Australia be sent back to their native land, with the word of God in their hands and in their hearts, to teach and to preach in every city and town to which they may come?

The prospects of good to be accomplished are highly promising. The Scriptures may be scattered advantageously, and will in all probability be read. Every man is free to read, to hear, and to worship as he will. No mandarins keep the abject crowd in fear, and no penal enactments visit the disciples of Christ with excommunication or tortures. And when the people return to their native soil, their mouths open and their hearts enlarged, divine grace, it is hoped, will make them instruments of diffusing abroad the knowledge of the gospel, which in their voluntary exile was made to them the power of God unto salvation.

LOO CHOO KINGDOM.

An article on this island-kingdom was published in the Magazine for September, 1854, pp. 391-394. It was briefly stated at that time that no mission had been successfully established at Loo

The mission originated with Lieut. Herbert John Clifford, R. N., who was on board the Lyra, when, in 1816, that ship, in company with the Alceste, visited the great Loo Choo island, on the occasion of Lord Amherst's embassy to China. Lieut. Clifford endeavored for nearly fifteen years to prevail on some of the great missionary societies to establish a mission in Loo Choo; and failing to do so, he, with a few other naval officers, established in the year 1845 the Loo Choo Naval Mission.' Sufficient funds having been raised, they sent out Dr. Bettelheim, with his wife, to Loo Choo. About seven years before his engagement with the committee, he had been converted to Christianity, and had been employed in missionary work among Jews and Gentiles.

In harmony with the general policy of the Japanese towards foreigners, the Loo Chooan government at first pursued a system of reserve and distance towards Dr. Bettelheim. In order to restrict intercourse, they found him a house and part of his provisions; set a guard and erected a guard-house near the entrance to his residence; supplied him with servants; and in order that these servants and guards might not be converted, they were repeatedly changed. Efforts were also made by the governments of China and Loo Choo to induce the British government to remove Dr. Bettelheim from his post. These not only proved unsuccessful, but were the occasion of visits being paid by men-of-war, to see that due protection was extended to the British residents in Loo Choo, and of a despatch from Lord Palmerston in 1852, bearing the following passages :—

ly, deemed it advisable to despatch a ship of war on a friendly and amicable mission to Loo Choo, in order to ascertain the actual position of Dr. Bettelheim, as well as to afford him that countenance and support to which, as a British subject, he is fully entitled. For the

"Her Majesty's Government, having | Christian Knowledge made a grant for learned with regret that a system of the purpose of enabling these translaannoyance and persecution has been tions of Scripture to be printed at practised towards Dr. Bettelheim, ap- Hongkong; and in the middle of last parently for the purpose of compelling year 100 copies of Luke, John, Acts, him to leave Loo Choo, have, according- and Romans, in Loo Chooan, and 50 copies of the Gospels in the languages of China and Japan were sent to Mr. Moreton. The workmanship and materials,' wrote the Bishop of Victoria from Hongkong, in February, 'are exquisitely fine. It has been very expensive, through the present high charges for paper and labor, through the disturbed state of this neighborhood. But I thought, that as Mr. Moreton's opportunities of distribution may be limited, it was better to give the Loo Choo mandarins and scholars a book attractive in appearance, as well as precious in its doctrinal contents.

purpose of ascertaining that that missionary is treated with kindness and hospitality by the Loo Choo authorities, a British ship of war, from time to time, will visit their islands."

In 1853 the missionary staff at Loo Choo was increased by the addition of a Chinese teacher and Chinese servant, and towards the close of the same year, by the addition of the Rev. George Harman Moreton, who had served seven years as a city missionary in London. About five months after the arrival of Mr. Moreton, the mission was deprived of the services of Dr. Bettelheim; but his coadjutor has continued to labor on, and the society states that he has devoted himself to acquiring a thorough and grammatical knowledge of the language; and has, moreover, by his judicious conduct, obtained from the government of Loo Choo the assistance of four of the literati, called Todzies, to join him in his studies; so that by the time another missionary could join him, he will, if his life and health be preserved, have acquired a sufficient knowledge of the language to be able to instruct a fellow laborer, and to enter more fully upon direct missionary work.

Dr. Bettelheim compiled a grammar and dictionary of the Loo Chooan language, and translated into it parts of the New Testament and of the liturgy of the Church of England. He also compiled a manuscript of the Four Gospels, in which the pure Japanese and Chinese translations are arranged in parallel columns. The Society for Promoting

'Captain Rodgers, of the Vincennes, speaks very highly of Mr. Moreton's fluent utterance of the language, and conciliatory demeanor to the people and their rulers. He seems admirably adapted for his post.'

We have been thus particular in our narration of the Loo Choo Mission, not merely on account of its intrinsic interest, but on account of the importance which it derives from its situation. The Loo Chooan is, according to the testimony of the missionaries, a mere dialect of the Japanese, and a dialect differing in no very great degree from the main language; and when Japan is fairly opened to missions, there will be books and trained men ready to enter and take possession. In the meantime, Japan may be reached indirectly through the merchants that frequent the ports of Loo Choo; for through it passes part of the traffic between Japan and China. Besides, the soldiers and garrison are Japanese.

The enemy has not been slow to seize this opportunity of obtaining a footing in Loo Choo. A French captain has lately landed five Roman Catholic clergymen there, of whom three are to remain, and two are destined eventually for Japan.

ANNUAL MEETINGS.

The forty-second annual meeting of the Board of Managers of the American Baptist Missionary Union will be held in the meeting-house of the Oliver Street Baptist Church, New York City, on Tuesday, May 13, 1856, at 10 o'clock, A. M. SEWALL S. CUTTING, Rec. Sec'y.

Rochester, N. Y., March 12, 1856.

Church, New York City, on
The annual sermon will be

The American Baptist Missionary Union will hold its ensuing annual meeting in the meeting house of the Oliver Street Baptist Thursday, May 15, 1856, at 10 o'clock, A. M. preached by the Rev. Robert W. Cushman, D. D., of Boston, or by Rev. Nathaniel Colver, of Detroit, Mich.

Portland, Me., March 12, 1856.

WILLIAM H. SHAILER, Rec. Sec.

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1787.69