If the effects produced by the communication of the Scriptures to the natives, have not yet corresponded with the extent of the wishes entertained on the subject, there is reason to hope that they will ultimately prove great and permanent.

Of the natives who have learned the English language, even imperfectly, it is observed by the Rev. T. Robertson, Pro-Secretary to the Calcutta Bible Society, that they have acquired new sentiments with respect to the Author of their being, without them selves being aware of it. Thus the foundations of Polytheism are undermined daily; and a hope is excited, that, in a little time, we may hear the whole building tumble to the ground. With the Sa cred Scriptures in our hands, we can have no doubt as to the temple that will rise upon its ruins. We look up to your Society as the great instrument, under God, for the raising of this house of the Lord, whither the nations of Hindostan may flow together under the banners of Jesus Christ." In the confidence authorized by this intelligence, and under a conviction that the wants were great a and urgent, your Committee have resolved to encourage and assist the proceedings in India, by renewing to their Corresponding Committee at Calcutta the annual grant of 20007. for three successive years, commencing with 1816. (To be continued.)

Eighth Report of the Jews' Society, (of London.)

C

(Continued from page 185.)

Your Committee recollect, that in Poland alone are half a million of unconverted Jews; that all the principal cities of Holland, Germany, and of the other countries of the North of Europe, (to say nothing of France, Spain, Italy, and Turkey,) have large colonies of Jews, whose spiritual necessities appeal, in the loudest and most urgent manner, to the benevolence of British Christians; your Committee, though they feel anxious to be as spar-" ing as possible in the expenses at home, are yet very far from contemplating any permanent reduction in the total expenditure of the Society; since its efforts ought to be directed at once to the East, the West, the North, and the South, wherever there is a Jew in a state of unbelief and spiritual darkness.

There is, therefore, an immediate and urgent call upon the public to come forward in aid of this great cause, with even inereasing liberality. Let us not forget, that the great Apostle of the Gentiles went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles, to preach to them the unsearchable riches of Christ.-Were the glorified^ spirit of that great Apostle, from amidst the innumerable assem bly of the Church of the First-born, now to address this Meeting with an audible voice, may we not conceive that he would say to British Christians, "Repay ye now, to my Brethren according to the flesh, the vast expenditure of my invaluable Mission to the

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Gentiles, with the whole accumulated interest of nearly eighteen centuries." Can your Committee permit the suspicion to remain for a moment on their minds, that such an appeal would be made in vain!

FOREIGN CORRESPONDENCE.

A correspondent has been continued by your Committee with Mr. Gustavus. Neiz, of Absenau, in Livonia, through the Rev. Mr. Ramftler, of Fulneck, near Leeds, who has kindly undertaken to become the channel of communication between your Committee and the friends of the Society in Germany and Russia. Various facts are mentioned in Mr. Nietz's letters, and in important documents sent by him, which tend to show that there are, here and there, among the continental Jews, some scattered individuals who believe in the Messiahship of our Lord, although in many cases they are deterred by the fear of man from making an open profession of the Christian Faith. All these circumstances, however, when joined with what is occurring in this country, and what is contained in other letters from the continent, of which extracts are about to be given, strengthen the presump-. tion that an important era in the history of that people is near at hand, and that this is the auspicious time when it is the urgent and imperative duty of the Christian Church to circulate among them with all diligence and activity the Hebrew translation of the New Testament.

Mr. Willert, of Sarepta, writes in a letter to Mr. Nietz :— "As far as I have had opportunity of observing this people, it seems to me as though the Polish Jews were more susceptible of the truth than those who reside in Germany. In a town in Volhynia resides an honest Israelite: I got acquainted with him on a journey, when I spent a few days in his house. I believe that this man would gladly distribute Christian Pamphlets among his countrymen. It might be proper to send him a New Testament in the Hebrew language. As the neighbourhood where he resides has much commerce with Moldavia and Turkey, he might, in my humble opinion, be of essential service. It would also be useful if the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah were printed with explanatory notes, and distributed. Scarcely any one will interest himself in behalf of the Ancient Covenant People, more than you are disposed to do. From this conviction, I earnestly entreat you to Send an address to the Russian Bible Society, concerning the debt of gratitude which we are bound to pay to this nation, having received all Divine Truth by a Jewish Saviour and Jewish Apostles. No Christian state has a stronger call to do something for this people than Russia, as nearly 500,000 Israelites reside in it, including Poland. How great might be the result, if the Russian Bible Society caused the New Testament to be printed in the Hebrew language, and to be distributed amongst the Jews!" . Mr. Nietz writes:

:

"The emigration of the Jews to Palestine is not now as numerous as it has been yet from Wilna and Lithuania, where the number of Jews amounts to 20,000, eighteen Jewish families, in the year 1814, emigrated to the Land of Promise. With all my endeavours, I have not yet succeeded in obtaining any intelligence of their proceedings there. As far as I could learn from several who are about to go to Palestine, their idea is, that the appearing of the Messiah will take place soon, and in their own land. To this effect, for example, a very aged and opulent Jewess in Mitau expressed herself, who had the design to remove thither." The limits of this Report will not permit your Committee to insert further extracts from this valuable correspondence, which will be found at full length in the Expositor.

Two letters have also been received by Mr. Ramftler from the Rev. Mr. Nitschke, of Nisky, in Saxony, dated 15th of October 1815, and 22d January 1816, which are well worthy of your attentive perusal. These letters will be found in the Expositor.

It appears from them, that a considerable number of Jews, joined by some eminent Christians, have undertaken to publish the books of the Old Testament, with Explanatory Notes, in the German language, for the Jews, who can now read the German more generally than the Hebrew: the Pentateuch is already printed. The reading the Old Testament, adds Mr. Nitschke, may perhaps occasion many Jews to search also the Scriptures of the New Testament, and thereby become the means of convincing them that Jesus is the Messiah.

A previous communication from Mr. Nitschke to Mr. Ramftler, containing a report of a visit to Berlin, in which he gave an account of the Jews in that city, had unfortunately miscarried. On this subject Mr. Nitschke states, that Judaism, properly so called, seems to be nearly at an end in Berlin: most of the Jews there are already so mixed with Christians, that little remains of their characteristic distinctions.

Respecting the condition of the Jews in Germany, and especially in the Russian dominions, Mr. Nitschke has transmitted the following extract from a publication of the Rev. Augusti, D. D. at Breslau.

Formerly the Jewish Religion, in its connexion with the state of the Christian Church, was little regarded. The Jews, though living in the midst of Germany, and scattered through all the provinces of the country, were considered as an exotic plant. The laws of toleration and custom did indeed grant to the Jews a mode of life consistent with the traditions of their fathers, and the exercise of their religious worship; but they were not acknowledged as a religious community. Their religious transactions were little noticed. The severity with which these adherents to the Mosaic Law were treated in Italy, Spain, and other countries, was indeed not imitated in Germany; and examples of intolerance

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and persecution, which aforetime were so common, of late years became more and more rare. Still, the German constitution granted to the Jews no more than toleration; and the proposals made by men of learning and politicians, relative to the melioration of the civil polity of the Jews, remained without effect. BUT THIS IS NOW FAR OTHERWISE. Since the late French and Batavian Republics granted perfect liberty and equality of civil prerogatives to all Jews, important measures have been taken in inost European States, for the improvement of the Jewish nation. The French government, which twice made an attempt of establishing a Jewish National Convention, exercised a strong influence in behalf of the Jews, in many States; which produced the agreement on the part of all the States belonging to the Rhenish Confederacy, to allow them not only an undisturbed exercise of their religion and laws, but also equality of civil rights with members of the Christian community. In the Prussian States also, the former laws and usages relative to Jews were repealed by a Royal Decree of March 11, 1812; and the principles of a new constitution for this people were laid down. In conformity to this constitution, all Jews under the Prussian Dominion are regarded as citizens of the State, and are to enjoy the same immunities as Christians. They may, therefore, be employed as Academical Teachers, or qualify themselves for any offices in Church or State. By these changes, the situation of the German Jews is completely altered; and the consequences of this important measure begin already to appear. That the Ecclesiastical condition of the Jews themselves has thus undergone a change, is manifest; and it would be well to solicit the opinions of men of learning and integrity, who enjoy the public confidence, on this subject. But the influence of this measure extends also to the Ecclesiastical Constitutions of Christians. The employment of Jews in Seminaries of Learning, which the law permits, is a new phænomenon, and will, in time, lead to singular discussions. By the prerogative which has been granted to the followers of the Mosaic Law, to possess estates, and landed property of all kinds, they may also obtain the patronage of Christian Churches, and their Ministers. It is easy to foresee that many inconveniences and collisions must be thereby produced: indeed, the parochial laws cannot remain as before."

Mr. Nitschke further writes on this subject :

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"The Jews have recently been the subject of several publications in Germany; but not with respect to their religion, but their naturalization, which already produces much inconvenience. Among the Jews themselves, an active correspondence is carried on concerning their mode of worship, and Ecclesiastical Constitution. It is apparent that a great fermentation exists among them! whether it will tend to bring them nearer to Christianity, is doubtful. At least, the obstacles to the exercise of activity in behalf of

the Jews seem thereby to be removed; entrance may be more easily gained; and a sphere of activity for the London Society appears to open in Germany. Should the Society desire it, I would candidly suggest some hints as to the formation of a plan for this purpose.'

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A letter has been addressed to the President of the Society by the Rev. Robert Pinkerton, communicating the observations made by the writer on the present state of the Jews in Poland, while travelling through that country. He also computes the Jews in Poland to be half a million in number.-Mr. Pinkerton's letter will be found in the Expositor of this month; and your Committee refer to that work for a more complete knowledge of its contents. Under the head of Foreign Correspondence, your Committee have only further to state, that a letter has been addressed to the Society by the Rev. John Jahn, Doctor of Philosophy and Theology, Capitular Canon of the Metropolitan Church of St. Stephen's, Vienna, and Counsellor of the Archiepiscopal Consistory, who is celebrated in Germany as an eminent scholar. This letter accompanies a Latin Work by the writer, on the Prophecies of the Old Testament respecting the Messiah which he has, in the most obliging manner, présented to the Society. From this circumstance, it may be inferred that the formation of this Institution has already excited the attention of the learned in various parts of Europe (To be concluded in our next.)

JUVENILE DEPARTMENT.

OBITUARY.

Elizabeth Allen was the daughter of poor parents, and was brought up in a large manufacturing town in Lancashire: her father and mother, as well as herself, were weavers. She was a constant attendant at a Sunday School where the providence of God has placed me, and had received her little education entirely within its walls. She first began to attend it at the age of ten years; but I never particularly noticed her until about two years after that period, when I was somewhat pleased with the feeling manner in which she repeated a task that had been given her, the subject of which I have forgotten.

Some time after this, I noticed her regular attendance at our little meetings for prayer and religious instruction, but did not observe in her any peculiar marks of piety. Perhaps my judgment, in not imputing to her the same degree of holiness I thought I perceived in others, might have been led astray for want of a due regard to the liveliness of her disposition; yet her conduct, even from a child, was steady, moral, and consistent.

The first intelligence I received of her progress in grace was from her teacher, and but a short time previous to her departurc hence. She had then been ill about ten weeks. On hearing the narration of several circumstances, I felt grieved that I had not been sooner informed of the event; and took the first opportunity