completed her 63d year. This was a fine finish to a missionary life! Oh, may my last end be like hers! Amen.

She was born in America, spent the vigour of her days in India, and died in the city of Canterbury, in England, where her body rests until the morning of the resurrection; but her spirit is, we believe, with her "Precious Jesus," casting her blood-bought crown at his feet; while she is again united with her venerated friend, Isabella Graham, who once wrote to her, "Be comforted, my dear Sally: we have an eternity of social happiness before us; we shall together sing of all that Christ has done for us, and rejoice in his glory, which shall issue out of all that happens in this world. If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus, will God bring with him; wherefore comfort one another with these words. Amen. And now, my reader, let me ask you, 'Is it any wonder that Mrs. Loveless, with her dying breath, called Jesus "precious?" He had been the Guide of her youth, her Comforter in the time of trouble, her Support all through life; and now he made her happy as she entered into eternity. No wonder that he was precious. And how does Christ appear to you? Have you sought "redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace?" Have you a good hope that he will "present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy?" Mrs. Graham said "Contrition itself is the fruit of grace." Have you felt it? Paul says, "Faith is the gift of God." Do you possess it? Consider these things, I beseech you, and if you are a partaker of them, improve them as Mrs. Loveless did, to advance the Divine glory. But if you are a stranger to them, then seek them with all your heart, and seek them without delay; and let the striking words of Mrs. Graham be ever sounding in your ears, "Christ and salvation are freely offered:-to be embraced, and your soul is saved; to be rejected, and your soul is lost."

MEMOIR OF BARDO,

THE FIRST MONGOL-BURIAT CONVERT.

THE Rev. John Crombie Brown, of St. Petersburg, gives the following particulars of the first convert among the MongolBuriat Tartars in connection with the London Missionary Society's Stations in Siberia.

"More than sixteen years had elapsed, from the time that the first Missionaries to the Buriats left the Imperial City, on their way to the barren wilds of Siberia, when the friends of our Saviour in St. Petersburg were cheered by the prospect of the heathen being converted in that distant province-a prospect which opened upon them with the following communication from the Rev. Edward Stallybrass, dated March 23, 1834 :

'I have this morning thought I could discover something like the fulfilment of the promise-" So shall my word be: it shall not return unto me void"—in a youth of about 17, with whom I spent an hour in conversation and prayer. He has heard much of the truth; and, during the last half year, 1 hope, felt much; and has now given in a request for baptism. He has been under instruction nearly two years, and has discovered great diligence and made great progress. If this work be of the Lord, his attainments may be turned to good purpose. If this be the work of God, it shall not be overthrown; and if it be not, it will not shake our confidence in the Divine promise.

He was from a distant district, and was brought providentially hither, to be received as a scholar, about two years since. From his manner and dialect, he was as a Galilean among the other boys, and soon became an object of ridicule with them. His application to learning, however, was uncommonly great. He was entirely ignorant of the letters of the alphabet; but he soon became able to read and write well, and also to commit to memory catechisms and passages of Scripture. His knowledge is necessarily limited, but I hope his heart is sincere.

'He has made application for baptism; and, in a conversation which I had with him on the subject, his views appear consistent; he did not expect to cleanse himself by it, but in it to avow himself a disciple of Christ. He has been informed of what he must expect of his unbelieving countrymen if he become a follower of Jesus, and he has already begun to experience it; having left off the worship of idols, he has been reproached and reviled, and turned out of their tents; but he seems unmoved by these things; and I trust that he has no

only relinquished the worship of idols, but begun to serve the living and true God in sincerity.

'I was much struck at the way in which he received the news of the death of his mother: his great concern was about her soul: she had never heard of the name of Christ-had died a heathen-and was lost for ever! These thoughts caused him much distress. As she was at the distance of 500 versts, he had never seen her since he first came hither.

'I do hope that he has been brought to see his sinful state, and the value of the great atonement for sin; and to rest on that Rock which shall never make ashamed. His conduct is in consistence with his profession." "

The friends of the Mission received this intelligence at St. Petersburgh with joy. Mr. Brown continues

"It would be impossible to convey by words a correct idea of the new and mixed emotions awakened in our souls by this welcome communication. Our peculiar relation to the Mission led us to view with no common interest the labours of the Missionaries in Siberia. It was immediately proposed, that, as many of us as conveniently could should assemble to return praise to Him, who had, in the multitude of His tender mercies, permitted our esteemed friends to see that their labour had not been in vain. Nor was it long, ere further information arrived to confirm our joy. Bardo was not the only Buriat youth who had given evidence of a change of heart; but of him alone I write at present. A letter from one of the female members of the Mission, to one of her friends in this city, brought us a few more particulars of the work of God; and from this letter I make the following extract, respecting the youth alluded to above.

May 10, 1834-Mr. Stally brass has for some time thought there was a promising spirit among some of his boys. One, in particular excited his hopes: he gave up the worship of the gods of his people: he talked much with Mr. Stallybrass's children, and told them he believed there was but one God and one Saviour, His Son Jesus Christ. It was known that he prayed daily in secret; and that when mixing with his own people, he told them what he himself felt, and besought them to come and hear the truth for themselves; and that if they died in their present state, trusting in gods which could not save them, and thus denying the only true God, they would certainly perish.

This youth, whose name is Bardo, is very poor; and has not much influence with those around him. He has been

*

turned out of their tents because he would not worship the gods.* He has, notwithstanding remained firm; and although all sort of abusive language is used to him, he has never been known to give way.'

"We continued, from time to time, to hear favourable accounts of these our Buriat brethren, and of the progress of Christianity in their hearts; but I do not recollect of any thing particular being heard of Bardo until a letter, bearing date August 29, 1834, brought us the following notice :

'One of our youths made the remark, some time ago, that he thought it would be no bad thing for the cause of Christ, if their enemies should beat and trouble them: " for this," said he, "will make the more noise; and many may hear of it in this way, and be led to inquire what these things mean." Happy youth! little did he know for what God was then preparing his soul."" This will appear from the following extract of a letter from the Rev. W. Swan, dated June 30, 1835:

"You will be concerned to hear that the youth, who has finished his early course, is Bardo-the hopeful scholar, mentioned in Mr. Stallybrass's letter published in the October Chronicle of last year. He was the first who gave indications of serious attention to the Gospel. By his open avowal of being a disciple of Christ, and his refusal to worship the gods of his fathers, he had rendered himself very obnoxious to the Lamas and other zealous devotees.

"Towards the end of last winter, a Lama one day beat him severely on the head; and immediately after he began to complain of being unwell: violent headache, and a considerable degree of fever ensued. Various means were resorted to, but without success, for his recovery. The fever continued, with unabated force, for a number of weeks, with some slight intermissions; and his strength gradually sunk. Other symptoms of disease soon manifested themselves; pains in the chest, cough, and sleeplessness, supervened; and he appeared gradually wasting away.

"About eight weeks ago, he requested to be moved to the tent of an uncle who lives in the neighbourhood: hoping that the change might be beneficial, we had him conveyed thither. A native doctor of some skill had been applied to, and put him under a course of medicine; but he continued to get worse; till his friends, fearing that he would die, began to talk of resorting to some of their heathenish rites, as the best means of saving his life. He would not suffer any such arts to be used; and afraid lest, against his will, any superstitious cere

*The gods are placed on a table opposite the door of the tent; and every one, as he enters, is expected to bow before them. 347

monies should be performed, he begged to be brought back to us. To this his friends readily consented-saying, that he was now ours, both body and soul; and that they gave him up to live and die as a disciple of the Saviour whom we preached. He was carefully brought back; and, although extremely weak, did not appear to suffer much from the removal.

"On the morning of the day on which he died, perceiving that his end was approaching, I told him, as I had done before, that he must give up all hopes of getting better; and then I had some very satisfactory conversation with him on the subject of his faith and hope. Should you die now, whither would your soul go? To heaven.' Who will receive it there?' God.'On what Saviour do you trust for salvation?' With emphasis, 'on Jesus Christ.'—If God had not, in His providence, brought you hither, to learn about that Saviour, what would have become of you?' I should have lived in sin, and gone to hell when I died.”

"Violent pain, and almost incessant cough, made it very difficult for him to speak for the last week or two of his life; but his mind continued perfectly clear and calm within a few moments of his death. His pulse was already fluttering, and his extremities beginning to grow cold, when I heard his dying confession, as just related. About one o'clock, his breathing became gradually softer, like that of one falling into a gentle slumber; till nearly two, when almost imperceptibly it ceased.

"Thus fell asleep in Jesus, one, whom I hope that we may regard as one of the first fruits of the Buriat nation gathered into the Saviour's kingdom; and one who may be said to have fallen a martyr to the cause of Christ: for I have little doubt, in my own mind, that the blows on the head, which he received from the enraged Lama, were the remote cause of his death.

"We endeavoured to improve the solemn event, for the benefit of his fellow scholars and others; and many tears were shed, when he was laid in a grave near the spot where the remains of our beloved sister, Mrs. Stally brass, await the resurrection. Tikshie, another of our dear young men, read over the grave, with a faltering voice, part of the fifteenth of the first Epistle to the Corinthians; and I spoke a few words to the people assembled, founded on the passage read. It was very touching; and, at the same time, highly encouraging to our minds, to hear our converted Buriat, who firmly trusts in the Saviour, joining thus in the funeral service, while we committed to the dust the body of another young Buriat who had died in the faith."