Speech of John Poynder, Esq. at a General Court of Proprietors of the East India Company, on Wednesday, September 22, 1830. containing evidence in proof of the direct encouragement afforded by the Company to the licentious and sanguinary system of Idolatry; and demonstrating the net amount of pccuniary profits derived by the Company from the tax imposed on the worshippers at the different temples. 8vo. Pp. xviii. and 164. Hatchards. 1830.

We noticed in our last volume, p. 399, the praiseworthy exertions of Mr. Poynder in bringing before the General Court of Proprietors of East India Stock, the countenance afforded by them to idolatry, and the pecuniary advantages derived from that source. We rejoice that he has now published the speech delivered on that occasion, which contains a most valuable collection of facts and authorities deserving wide circulation and deep attention. When it is recollected that cruelty and licentiousness are the characteristics of Hindoo Idolatry, it will easily be conceived that even in the most guarded statements, intimations must be introduced which are revolting to the pure in heart.— Mr. P. has indeed evinced the UTMOST DELICACY-yet after all, what an awful view does chastised collection of authorities give of eastern abominations, and of the guilt contracted by those who countenance and derive pecuniary advantage from that abomination. On whom does this guilt especially rest? ON THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. The Court of Directors in a letter of the 24th of March 1809, intended to go out to Bengal, observed that,

this

For a Government which is not Hindoo, to elect the Priests who are to superintend a Hindoo Temple, to exercise a controul over its ministers and officers, or to take the management of its funds, would seem to the Directors a direct invasion of the Hindoo

Institutions; and for a Government professing Christianity to do those things, would be to act incompatible with its own principles.' And again: It is not our opinion-whatever the example of preceding Governments may have been-that the British Government ought to tax the Hindoos purely on a religious account; for instance, to make them pay merely for access to any of their places of devotion.

These paragraphs-and I state the fact with sorrow!-were immediately expunged by the Board of Controul; and others substituted, having a directly contrary tendency.

Upon this, the Directors, greatly to their credit, remonstrated :

In spite of this remonstrance of the Directors, the Board of Controul prevailed; and finally declared they would not yield their own views to the desire of the Directors [Letter of 4th March, 1809, p. 17]: in consequence of which, the Despatch which was substituted by the Board of Controul went out, in direct opposition to the recorded opinion of the Court of Directors; who, honestly feeling themselves the administrators of a Christian Code, had thus refused to sanction, by so gross a measure, the promotion and perpetuation of Idolatry. It is remarkable, that before the arrival in Bengal of the substituted Despatch, the Government there had passed, by their own authority, the Regulation of April 1809, rescinding so much of the former law as related to the "interior management and controul" of the Temple; but fully sanctioning the levying the Tax from Filgrims for admission to the Temple, allotting a sum for the expences of the Idol, and appointing an Officer of the Government to collect it; and it is under this regulation that the impost has been ever since, and is now, collected.

Of the effect produced on the native mind by the Company's tax on Pilgrim worship; a tax producing a clear revenue of at least 99,2057. in the last seventeen years, the following extract affords a striking illustration :

We have a body of Idol Misssionaries, far exceeding in number all the Christian missionaries, perhaps, throughout the world, going forth from year to year, to propagate delusion, and proclaim, for the sake of gain, (what, perhaps, not one among them believes !) the transcendent efficacy of beholding

a log of wood; and all these, through a perversion of British humanity, regularity, and good faith, paid from year to year by the officers of a Christian and a British Government.

'But that which most fills the mind with distress, is the use which these ministers of deception make of the British name throughout the country. In proclaiming the greatness of Juggernaut, they of course affirm, that he has now so fully convinced his conquerors of his divinity, that they have taken his temple under their own superintendance; and that, to provide him with an attendance worthy of his dignity, they expend thereon nearly sixty thousand rupees from year to year, inspecting with care every department, and punishing any negligence in the service of the God ;– that, although the British so far surpass the Hindoos in knowledge, they are so fully convinced of Juggernaut's deity, that they command a portion of food to be set before him!-that they, in reality, worship him; and although, from their being unclean, the god cannot permit their near approach within his temple, yet that, at his festivals, they testify their veneration, by sending the finest English woollens, from their own stores in Calcutta, to adorn his car ;-that they appoint officers to see that due order is observed in his worship; and that some great man, the Representative of the Governor-general, frequently attends, to grace the solemnity with his presence; that, as they need money, convinced of the transcendent benefits to be obtained from beholding him, they levy a tax on those who behold Juggernaut; which however, on the richest, does not exceed ten rupees, while they permit the poorest to behold him gratis;-that they themselves are paid, and sent forth by them, to persuade all, who wish for the full remission of sins, to come and behold the God in all his majesty.

The following passage corrects an error to which we have unintentionally given circulation.

It was inadvertently stated by one or more of the Daily Papers, on recording the Debate, that the Motion was lost by a large Majority; and the Asiatic Journal, for October, stated the majority to be considerable.' The fact, however, was, that the question was decided by an inconsiderable majority, and that such majority was actually constituted by the votes of the Directors themselves. I can not only pledge myself to the correctness of this stateJAN. 1831.

F

ment, but can confidently appeal, in support of its accuracy, to any one present, whatever might have been his opinion on the question itself.

One extract more is too honourable to the individuals mentioned to be passed over in silence.

I desire, in conclusion, to record my particular acknowledgments to the few Honourable Proprietors who publicly supported the Motion by arguments of no ordinary value. The testimony of that, after having been appointed to the Mr. Trant, who informed the Court, lucrative situation of Juggernaut, he found it utterly impossible, as a Christian and a man, to lend himself to such abominations, and renounced his office accordingly-the powerful, though unadorned, reasoning of Mr. Robert Humphrey Marten, who, as a Protestant Dissenter, thus openly protested, in the name of the large and influential class which he represented, against the encouragement of the Temple Worship for interested and sordid purposes-and, appeal of Mr. Rigby, who, although more especially, the vigorous and lucid evidently unprepared for the occasion, displayed such an acquaintance with his subject, and enforced it by such feeling and eloquence, as reflected equal honour on his head and his heart-all these auxiliaries in the cause of Truth and Righteousness cannot fail, with the aid and blessing of God, to ensure the ultimate success of the late attempt, and the eventual abandonment of this commerce of iniquity.

We earnestly press the perusal of this speech on ministers and persons of influence; it is not perhaps desirable, for reasons we have hinted, that it should be introduced into the family circle, but these very reasons loudly call upon those, whose children or relatives may possibly be engaged in the Company's service, to step forward, and if possible remedy these outrageous atrocities. We take leave of Mr. P. with gratitude for his exertions, with the hope that he will go forward with the conviction, that he must ere long succeed, as he has already done in obtaining the prohibition of Suttees, a prohibition long resisted on the ground of supposed danger, but which is now found at once safe and practicable.

A NUMBER of these elegantly printed and highly adorned volumes, have this year as usual issued from the press. Many of them are entirely foreign to our work, and we therefore pass them over with one general remark, that, amidst the effusions of talent, and the triumphs of art, they not unfrequently contain sentiments and representations which we cannot approve. As Christian moralists we must protest against the half-naked and wanton figures which are introduced into some of the embellishments. Possibly such sketches may be justified in the cabinet of the artist, but they are utterly unfit for the drawing room tables, and tend exceedingly to the injury of proper and delicate feelings. Some however of these volumes take higher ground, are edited by moral and religious persons, and contain contributions from individuals of unquestionable talent and piety; yet even these must be recommended with caution, since some of them contain a rather incongruous assemblage of articles. At the same time we have only had the opportunity of examining a few, and may therefore very possibly overlook some which are equally, if not more deserving of commendation, than those which we now proceed briefly to notice.

1. The Iris: a Religious and Literary Offering. Edited by the Rev. Thomas Dale. M.A. Pp. xxiv. and 334. Low,

1831.

THIS elegant volume contains eleven engravings, exclusively on sacred subjects, and chiefly taken from old masters. Most of these are exceedingly beautiful, though one or two are common, and one, representing Jesus with Mary in the Garden, highly objectionable; it is taken indeed from a painting by Titian, but great names are no excuse for absurdity. The Poems, Essays, &c. contained in the volume, are generally speaking of second-rate literary excellence, and some must on moral and religious grounds be placed

still lower. We do not like to call Balaam a wizard; the dream and the recollections of a murderer, are neither of them to our taste, while Nathan and David, and Mount Moriah, dilute and weaken the effect which the simple scripture narrative is calculated to produce. Several of the articles, are, however, well written and instructive; of these the following short poem may be regarded as a somewhat favourable specimen.

MADONNA AND CHILD.

BY T. H. BAYLEY, ESQ.

He came not from on high Arrayed iu splendour bright, He threw aside the attributes Of majesty and might:

A gentle child-the virgin breast Of woman was his place of rest.

No loud avenging voice

Proclaimed Messiah's birth;
The Son of God came down to teach
Humility on earth!

And by his sufferings to efface,
The errors of a sinful race.

Not on a purple throne,

With gold and jewels crown'd, But in the meanest dwelling-place The precious babe was found. Yet star-directed sages came, And kneeling, glorified His name.

To shepherds first was shewn

The promised born of heaven, Who cried "To us a child is born,

To us a Son is given ! "

DEATH from his mighty throne was hurl'd, FAITH hailed SALVATION to the world.

Lord may thy holy cross

Bear peace from clime to clime; Till all mankind at length are freed From sorrow born of crime. Dispel the unbeliever's gloom, And end the terrors of the tomb.

2. The Sacred Offering. A Poetical Annual. Pp. x. and 192. Hamil

ton. 1831.

THIS is a pleasing and interesting little volume. The sentiments are correctand the poetry in many instances excellent. The following sonnet is a brief, but fair specimen. We hope the present volume may meet with encouraging

success.

SONNET.

MATTHEW CHAP. XI.

"Come unto me," the heavenly Teacher said, "All ye with labour and with toil opprest, And I will give your wearied spirits rest; And bear my yoke, and in my footsteps tread, For I am meek and lowly, and will lead

Your souls to peace; for gentle is my yoke, My burthen light."-Oh! not in vain were spoke, Saviour, thy words of mercy; still decreed To cheer my drooping soul, upon its way Through earthly scenes of trial, care, and strife:

Yes, I will come to thee: thy words of life Shall calm each anxious thought, and chase away

The hopes, the fears, the vain desires that rise To lure my spirit from its kindred skies.

3. The Olive Branch. 32mo. Pp. xii. and 308. Edinburgh. 1831. THIS little volume more exactly meets our ideas than any of the annuals which we have this year seen. We do not indeed mean to subscribe to every sentiment, but it is at once instructive and entertaining, and we have not met with any thing against which we feel it necessary to caution our readers. The following is a specimen of its Poetry.

A CHILD AT PRAYER.

BY THE REV. ROBERT TURNBULL.
Behold! a scene of love,
And holiness sublime,
To lift the soul above

This narrow earthly clime
A lovely little child at prayer
Her parents standing by,
Gazing upon their infant fair
With deep delighted eye.
A holy halo fills the place:

A light divine, a heavenly grace.
Her face's heavenly glow,

Her dark and pensive eye,

Her alabaster brow

On which black ringlets lie,
Her little hands up-turned to heaven,
Her body gently bent,

All mingling like the hues of even,
With mellow sunbeams blent,
Give to the scene a magic glow
Which only, happy spirits know.
This is a sight to wake,

Of past delights the dreams,
Like music on the lake,

Or dying sunny gleams;
To raise the sigh for beauty flown,
Which time can ne'er restore,
To draw the tear for gladness gone,
For music heard no more;
And conjure up a vision grand,
Of beautiful, but vanished land.
This too should rouse our faith,
And bear the soul away,
Above the shadowy earth

To climes of cloudless day,
For this is heaven begun in time,
A prelude of that bliss

Which matchless, endless and sublime,

No tongue can e'er express;

A glory from the world above,
A sun-beam of eternal love.

O well may angels gaze
Upon the lovely sight,
And well to heaven may raise
The song of deep delight:
For richer incense ne'er arose

From Eastern shrines to God,
And lovelier scene did ne'er repose
In India's bright abode.
This is a triumph of that love

That shines afar from worlds above!

A Cypress Wreath for an Infant's Grave; with an Introduction, and an Essay on Infant Salvation. By the Rev. John Bruce. 18mo. Pp. xii. and 242. Hamilton.

THIS is not, strictly speaking, an Annual. It is, however, a very suitable present to place in the hands of any affectionate parents, who have been bereaved of their beloved offspring. It consists of a selection from the most eminent writers, both in poetry and prose, arranged in seven sections. We select as a specimen the following

poem.

SLEEP ON MY BABE.
Sleep on my babe; thy little bed
Is cold, indeed, and narrow;
Yet calmly there shall rest thy head,
And neither mental pain nor dread

Shall e'er thy feelings harrow.
Thou may'st no more return to me,
But there's a time, my dearest,
When I shall lay me down by thee,
And when of all, my babe shall be,
That sleep around me, nearest.

And sound our sleep shall be my child,
When earth's foundation's shaken;
Till He, the pure, the undefil'd,
Who once like thee, an infant smil'd,
The dead to life awaken.

Then if to Him, with faith sincere,
My babe at death was given,
The kindred tie that bound us here,
Though rent apart with many a tear,
Shall be renewed in heaven. H. C.

The Welcome Intruder into the Social Circle, offered to Parents and Heads of Schools, when they wish for an hour's Instructive Amusement among their Young People. By James Churchill. 32mo. Second Edition. Riddle. 1831.

The Divine Authority and Perpetual Obligation of the Lord's Day, asserted in Seven Sermons, delivered at the Parish Church of St. Mary's Islington. By Daniel Wilson, M. A. Vicar. 12mo. Pp. xxxiv. and 205. Wilson. 1831.

An Address to the Labourers, on the Subject of destroying Machinery. 8vo. Pp. 8. price 1d.

The Results of Machinery, namely, cheap production and increased employment exhibited; being an Address to the Working Men of the United Kingdom. 18mo. Pp. 36. Knight.

1831.

THIS is a most seasonable publication, and, at the moderate price of 2d. clearly points out the fallacy of the outcry so often raised against machinery.

CORFU SCHOOLS, &c. WE regret to state, that the Rev. H. D. Leeves has recently experienced an attack of Ophthalmia, which, though mercifully removed, will require care and precaution to prevent a relapse.

Mr. L. states under date of Oct. 14, that the system of Schools in Corfu, with God's blessing, prospers. There are now three female schools established in the country, besides the one in town. One of the former is close to our residence at Potamo; and, since we removed hither, has been under Mrs. Leeves's and my superintendence. I also take charge of the Potamo Sunday School, commenced by Mr. Hildner (now at Syra with Dr. Korck) and Mr. Lowndes, which is attended by from forty to fifty children, to whom I have great pleasure in giving instruction, and explaining the word of God. Indeed, I may say that this my Sunday morning's occupatiou is one of the greatest enjoyments I have and it is in such schools as these that one sees the Society's Testaments turned to good use, and evidently bringing forth fruit. About six weeks ago, Mrs. Leeves and myself opened a Female School at Manduchio, a large suburb of Corfu. between this village and the town: it has fifty-five children on its books, and is regularly attended by about forty, whose order and progress is very satisfactory. Considerable interest having been excited at Manduchio, by the notice that a Sunday School would be established there, I went on sunday afternoon last, to open it at our Girl's School-house. Ninety-five boys and forty girls attended; and a large concourse of people of the village came to hear what was going forward; many of whom remained, with much attention, to the close. At these Sunday Schools, as well as the Day Schools, we begin and end with prayer. Two Greek Priests, who conduct a large boys' school next door to us, attended, and brought their children, and assisted in giving instruction; teaching their boys, for the first time, to repeat the Lord's Prayer in the vulgar tongue, for facilitating the understanding of which a set of questions has been prepared. I had myself a Testament class of about twenty boys, with a number of attentive audit

ors standing behind them: this is an encouraging beginning, for which God be thanked! May He establish the work, and enable us to go on in humility and wisdom! I have also to tell you, that on Tuesday last, a Committee was formed in Corfu, "for the Promotion of Female education in the Island of Corfu, and the other Islands of the Ionian States." The object of this Committee is, to superintend the prosecution of the system of Female education already begun; extending it to the other parts of this, and afterwards to the other islands; and to correspond with such societies or individuals in Great Britain, or elsewhere, as are disposed to assist us in these views. We shall do what we can to raise some funds here; but we must, I fear, look to the liberality of English friends for our main supplies.

ASTRACHAN.

THE REV. W. Glen, who is occupied in Translating the Scriptures into Persian, for the British and Foreign Bible Society, writes under date of Aug. 27.

Your favour of 16th June I had the pleasure of receiving more than a month ago: but though I then intended to acknowledge it in a week or two, by which time I supposed my version of the Minor Prophets might be transcribed and ready for transmission, the appearance of the Cholera Morbus in this city, and in my own family in particular, disconcerted my previous arrangements.

'Such a time the city of Astrachan never saw, in the memory of the present generation at least, as has elapsed since the 30th ult; at which date it was ascertainined that the Cholera was in the town. The greater part of that period, business was, in a manner, completely suspended, at the bank, the bazaar, &c. the shops were almost all of them shut; and an universal gloom sat on the faces of the inhabitants, as they passed through the streets of the city. Out of nót more than about forty thousand inhabitants, it is calculated that from five to six thousand must have fallen victims to it in the city alone, and that about one half of the adults have been more or less affected with it. were cut off almost instantaneously, and multitudes in the course of six or eight

Some