V.-Demerara-Test Coast.

HISTORICAL RETROSPECT.

BY THE REV. J. FOREMAN.

BENEZER CHAPEL, West Coast, Demerara, was re-opened on

Tuesday, 8th April. The day was beautifully fine, and by the time appointed for the commencement of the service every part of this large and handsome place of worship was filled with a congregation numbering upwards of a thousand persons. The opening prayer was offered by the Rev. F. C. Glasgow. Psalms lxxxiv. and lxxxv. were read by the Rev. J. Ketley, who also led the devotions of the assembly in prayer. The Rev. F. A. Ross, Scotch Church, read the lesson from the New Testament-viz., 2 Cor. iv. The re-dedication prayer was offered up by the Rev. J. Currie. A deeply interesting, instructive, and impressive sermon followed, by the Rev. George Sykes, Wesleyan Superintendent, from 2 Cor. v. 13-15. The Rev. J. Foreman then read the annexed brief historical statement.

The honour of having been the first to preach the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to those who were in slavery on the West Coast of Demerara belongs to the missionaries of the London Missionary Society.

The people of that generation have all passed away, but some of them are still held in affectionate remembrance by many of those who are assembled here to-day: one of them (I refer to William Trotz) remembered the arrival on this coast of the Rev. Richard Elliott in 1819, and I am speaking in the presence of those who, as well as myself, heard him say that, at that time, not only could not any of the slaves read a simple word, but they "did not know the meaning of such words as Bible, Jesus, Heaven, Hell, Sabbath, Resurrection, or Eternity." There existed then a state of heathen darkness such as we, who live in this land now, cannot realise.

Rev. R. Elliott was originally appointed by the Directors of the London Missionary Society to Tobago. He was not allowed to remain there by the then slave-owners. He came from thence to Demerara and brought with him the timbers and flooring boards (of fine old crabwood) of the house that was then being framed for his residence-these timbers and boards now form part of the house in which I am living. Mr. Elliott lengthened the house, and fitted up the lower part as a place for the worship of Almighty God; and the story above as a dwelling-house for himself. This was the first and, at that time, the only place of Divine worship on this coast.

When the insurrection of the slaves on the East Coast of Demerara took place in 1823, the Rev. R. Elliott--as well as the Rev. John Smith, of Le Resouvenir, the Martyr Missionary of Demerara-was arrested and taken to Georgetown. The Rev. J. Smith was imprisoned in an upper room of the old Court house, then standing on part of the site on which the new Courts of Justice are being erected; and the Rev. R. Elliott was confined in the pulpit, by day, and in the vestry, by night, of what was then the Dutch Reformed Church, which, at that troublous period, was turned into a barrack for the militia. The Dutch Reformed Church is known to us as St. Andrew's (Church of Scotland). Mr. Elliott was offered his liberty if he would promise to leave the colony. He knew no charge could truthfully be laid against him, but he gave the promise, and reached England in February, 1824.

Soon after the insurrection, the premises belonging to the London Missionary Society on the East Coast, Demerara, and the house in which I now reside (then, as I have said, a place of worship and a dwellinghouse under one roof) were seized by the Government of the colony, and handed over to the Church of England, and by the then authorities of that Church retained for several years. As no redress could be obtained in the colony, the matter was brought before the British Parliament, and the Government of that day promised that these properties should be restored to their rightful owners-viz., the Directors and missionaries of the London Missionary Society, and they were so restored by the Government of Demerara on the receipt of orders from the Home Government to that effect.

The late Rev. Joseph Ketley then resumed charge of this district in ccnnection with his work in Georgetown, until relieved of it by the arrival of the Rev. James Scott, M.A., who laboured in this part of the colony for thirty-five years, and during whose ministry this place of worship was built. In a letter addressed to the Directors of the London Missionary Society on the 14th September, 1843, Mr. Scott wrote as follows:

"I am happy to say our new chapel is completed, except painting. It was opened for Divine worship on Friday last, the 8th inst. We were favoured with the presence of all the brethren in this division of the mission, together with the Revs. E. Davies and J. Dalgliesh from Berbice." The "brethren" to whom Mr. Scott referred were, I believe, the Revs. Ketley, Rattray, Henderson, Wallbridge, and Markland.

All these ministers of whom Mr. Scott wrote, as well as himself, have "entered into rest," and we stand to-day in the places of the honoured dead who, forty years ago, took part in the dedication of this sanctuary to the worship of Almighty God, and of His Son our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and of God the Holy Ghost.

Most of the hearers of that day are also gone, though there are some here present who were here forty years ago, and who remember worshipping in the old Ebenezer Chapel (viz., in my house) before this sanctuary was built.

The work we undertook last year in connection with the fortieth anniversary-viz., to thoroughly repair and repaint this place of holy worship, and so hand it down to the next generation-we have been permitted to accomplish. The total outlay has been nearly 1,500 dollars. This has been met in part by the following kind and liberal donations, some of which have been sent to me unasked [list read] and amount to 329 dollars. A sum of about 900 dollars has been also contributed or collected (mainly the former) by the people belonging to this place of worship, in addition to their regular contributions for the support of the ministry and the maintenance of the public worship of Almighty God. The great mass of the people have done well, very well indeed, and I gladly bear my testimony thereto. I also tender my sincere thanks to those who belonging to the Scotch, English, and Roman Catholic Churches on this coast-have kindly helped us in this work.

Now, the work needs finishing. The carpenters and painters are gone, but the work will not be finished until the last cent of the expense incurred is paid. You know I abominate debt, and especially debt on a place of which we speak with reverence as " God's house," and in order to prevent our being encumbered with debt it is necessary that the re-opening collections of to-day and next Sunday shall, together, amount to at least 250 dollars.

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I thank and praise the Lord God Almighty who placed in my heart the desire to do for this place of holy worship that which our eyes to-day see, and for permitting me to carry that desire into execution; yet this is only a means to an end. My heart's desire and prayer to God for you all is that you may be saved," and for this I labour and pray. I charge you, young people, to love God, and the services of the house of the Lord, and to hand down this place, in which your fathers have worshipped God, to the generation that shall succeed you, in the like good order to that in which we, the fathers, hand it down to you, the children, this day. May the Lord God Almighty ever smile on and bless your efforts for His glory. Here may the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ be ever preached, in all its fulness, freeness, simplicity, and loveliness; and may the Holy Spirit's influence be ever felt, so that men, women, and children may be saved, and God glorified.

R. P. Drysdale, Esq., Mayor of Georgetown, gave a short address on the duty of supporting the cause of God; the Rev. J. R. Macfarlane gave out a hymn commencing, "Forward be our watchword;" and the Rev. J. S. Simon concluded the service with prayer and the Benediction.

The collection was a capital one, and such as to warrant the belief that, with the collections of the following Sunday, and one or two promised donations yet to be received, the expenses that have been incurred in repairing and beautifying this place of worship will be entirely met.

M

VI.-South India-Gooty.

NOTES OF MY FIRST TOUR.

BY THE REV. A. A. DIGNUM.

Y work during the past twelve months has chiefly consisted in the study of the language spoken by the people amongst whom I hope to labour. On one or two occasions, however, I have gone out with Mr. Stephenson into the district, and thus had opportunities of coming into contact with the people, and of seeing something of our work as carried on amongst them. My experience, however, has been so limited, and first impressions are so necessarily crude and certain of subsequent correction, that I should not have thought of writing anything for the present Report had not Mr. Stephenson suggested that a brief account of a missionary journey might be of interest to the friends at home. This is my excuse and reason for publishing the following notes, which record my first experience of district work, and are given almost exactly as they stand in my diary.

Mr. Stephenson and myself left Gooty on Saturday evening, and travelled by rail to Tadpatri, a large town about thirty miles east of Gooty, where we were met by our native missionary, Moses Williams. We had intended to stay at the station all night, but finding that our luggage bandies (carts) had gone to the travellers' bungalow, situated in the town two and a-half miles distant, we went thither to put up for the night. It may be well to explain that a travellers' bungalow is a building erected by Government for the convenience of travellers, and is the best substitute the country affords-though a very poor substitute for the old-fashioned English inn with its quaint promise of "accommodation for man and beast."

The bungalow at Tadpatri was the first of the kind I had stayed in, and its bare walls and floors and empty rooms looked very uninviting. A table, a couple of chairs and cots improved its appearance, and were all that was necessary in the way of furniture.

The following morning, Sunday, I was roused about five o'clock, and, after bathing and dressing, went out into the compound. The sky sparkled with stars, amongst which for the first time I saw the Southern Cross. A few minutes before six, just as day was beginning to break, we set out on our journey to Shennagalagudur, one of our out-stations, about seven miles from Tadpatri. After leaving the