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WRITTEN AT CRISHNAGRAGUR, IN 1786.

"As meadows parch'd, brown groves, and withering flowers, Imbibe the sparkling dew, and genial showers,

As chill dark air inhales the morning beam,

As thirsty harts enjoy the gelid stream,

Thus to man's grateful soul from Heaven descend

The mercies of his Father, Lord, and Friend!"

"In matters of eternal concern, the authority of the highest human opinions has no claim to be admitted as a ground of belief, but it may with the strictest propriety be opposed to that of men of inferior learning and penetration: and, whilst the pious derive satisfaction from the perusal of sentiments according with their own, those who doubt or disbelieve, should be induced to weigh with candour and impartiality arguments which have produced conviction in the minds of the best, the wisest, and most learned of mankind.

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Among such as have professed a steady belief in the doctrines of Christianity, where shall greater names be found than those of Bacon and Newton? Of the former, and of Locke, it may be observed, that they were both innovators in science: disdaining to follow the sages of antiquity through the beaten paths of error, they broke through prejudices which had long obstructed the progress of sound knowledge, and laid the foundation of science on solid ground; whilst the genius of Newton carried him extra flammantia mania mundi. These men, to their great praise, and we may hope to their eternal happiness, devoted much of their time to the study of the scriptures. If the evidence of revelation had

been weak, who were better qualified to expose its unsoundness? if our national faith were a mere fable, a political superstition, why were minds which boldly destroyed prejudices in science, blind to those in religion? They read, examined, weighed, and believed; and the same vigorous intellect that dispersed the mists which concealed the temple of human knowledge, was itself illuminated with the radiant truths of divine revelation.

"Such authorities, and let me now add to them the name of Sir William Jones, are deservedly entitled to great weight. Let those who superciliously reject them, compare their intellectual powers, their scientific attainments and vigour of application, with those of the men whom I have named: the comparison may perhaps lead them to suspect, that their incredulity (to adopt the idea of a profound scholar) may be the result of a little smattering in learning, and great self-conceit; and that by harder study, and a humbled mind, they may regain the religion which they have left. -The investigation and the propagation of truth, as Sir William Jones has himself declared, in the following elegant couplets, was the fixed object of his whole life.

"Before thy mystic altar, heavenly Truth,

I kneel in manhood, as I knelt in youth:
Thus let me kneel, till this dull form decay,
And life's last shade be brighten'd by thy ray :
Then shall my soul, now lost in clouds below,
Soar without bound, without consuming glow."

I shall conclude these quotations with the remark of Lord Teignmouth, that the friends of religion, who know the value of the "sure and certain hopes" which it inspires, will remark with

satisfaction, the pious sentiments expressed by Sir William Jones a few months only before his own death. They will recollect the determination which he formed in youth, to examine with attention the evidence of our holy religion, and will rejoice to find unprejudiced inquiry terminating, as might be expected, in a rational conviction of its truth and divine authority.

Of all modern writers on the subject of Hindoo conversion, I confess myself to be most pleased with the mildness, liberality, and moderation of Lord Valentia. Good sense, nice discrimination, and a knowledge of the Anglo-Indian character, as well as some acquaintance with the prejudices of the Hindoes, are evident to every man who has spent a few years in India. On this subject we must divest ourselves of partiality, and view man as he is. No one can more admire the British character in India than myself. The benevolent and manly virtues which so distinguish it, made an early impression upon my mind, and never can be eradicated. I have taken every seasonable opportunity to impress my readers with a just sense of these amiable characteristics; not from after-thought, and subsequent recollection, but from letters written at the moment

"Warm from the heart, and true to all its fires!"

alive to every feeling of generosity, philanthropy, and benevolence. I shall not insert the whole of Lord Valentia's opinion on this interesting subject, but some of his remarks are so truly just, and at this eventful period so peculiarly interesting, that they must not be withheld from those who may not have perused his Lordship's late publication. Such sentiments I would rather convey in the language of the noble writer than my own.

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"It will hardly be believed, that in the splendid city of Calcutta, the head of a mighty Christian empire, there is only one church of the establishment of the mother-country, and that by no means conspicuous either for size or ornament. It is also remarkable, that all British India does not afford one episcopal see, while that advantage has been granted to the province of Canada; yet it is certain that from the remoteness of the country, and the peculiar temptations to which the freedom of manners exposes the clergy, immediate episcopal superintendance can no where be more requisite. From the want of this it is painful to observe, that the characters of too many of that order, are by no means creditable to the doctrines they profess; which, together with the unedifying contests that prevail among them even in the pulpit, tend to lower the religion and its followers, in the eyes of the natives of every description. If there be any plan for conciliating the minds of the natives to Christianity, it is so manifestly essential it should appear to them in a respectable form at the seat of government, that I presume all parties will allow that the first step should be to place it there upon a proper footing. Since my return to England I find that an episcopal establishment for India, upon a very large scale, has been publicly recommended by the Rev. Dr. Buchanan. Were its expediency in other respects agreed upon, I fear the present state of the revenue in that country would render such a serious addition to the expenditure unjustifiable; but the maintenance of one bishop could not reasonably be objected to; for, with a revenue of eleven millions, it becomes a duty to appropriate a part to religious purposes, and not a mere consideration of eligibility.

"In every view, political as well as religious, it is highly desirable that men of liberal education and exemplary piety should be employed; who, by their manners, would improve the tone of society in which they lived; and by the sacredness of their character operate as a check on the tendency to licentiousness that too frequently prevails.

"The splendor of episcopal worship should be maintained in India in the highest degree our church allows. On the natives, accustomed to ceremonial pomp, and greatly swayed by external appearances, it would impress that respect for our religion, of which, I am sorry to say, they are chiefly by our neglect of it at present destitute. The natural effect of which has been to excite a doubt in the minds of the Hindoo of our own belief in that faith we are so anxious to press upon him.

"The native inhabitants may, indeed, from the sight of one solitary church, believe that we have a national religion, but I know of nothing that can give this information to the rest of our eastern subjects. Whilst the Mussulman conquerors of India have established mosques in every town of their dominions, the traveller, after quitting Calcutta, must seek in vain for any such mark of the religion of their successors."

My opinions do not entirely coincide with those of Lord Valentia respecting the insurmountable difficulty, or rather the impossibility, of converting the brahmins and higher orders of Hindoos, as is evident throughout these volumes; the cause of my differing arises not only from my own observation in India, but from what we know is now actually taking place in favour of Christianity among the brahmins themselves. I acknowledge there

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