finful father for their daily fupport. | time, and engroffed my precious probation feafon of preparation for eternity. But feeling that this pamphlet was more fpecious than clear or argumentative, I forfook it. Boasted reafon carried me above it, yet still my foul was unimpreffed, and my danger, daily of finking into hell torments, totally difappeared. I lived the life of a pagan, without prayer in my family, without prayer in any fit uation. My children were taught, but not in a way of piety. In this fituation I became perfectly While I laboured, acting in conflant rebellion against God, to procure their fuftenance, I neglected their fouls. Alas, the parents task was fufpended, and little thought was taken with regard to their precious and immortal fouls. They looked up to me for their daily food; they needed daily inftruction in religion, they needed the morning and evening prayers of a pious father, and to be dedicated to God, but were neglected. I have to recollect with aftonishment the time when I disbelieved the word,independent, and eternity was of God-and efteemed it nothing totally obliterated from my mind. more than a cunningly devifed fa- I neither wifhed, nor cared to have ble. As a confequence of this, any others concerned, about their I had no conductor. I was there- fouls. Thus I lived in perfect fefore as you will eafily conceive, fet curity, every day hovering about afloat in the world. The bible, the door that enters into mifery. containing threatnings, made me The bible, lay undisturbed, like a defpife it, and the man who fhould ufelefs page upon the shelf. I befpeak with a reverent refpect for it. gan to think that gloomy infidelity Such being the condition of things, would foon be univerfal. Diftur I became a great reafoner, and bed however in a certain conver fuppofed I could confute'any argu- fation, about this time, I went ments in favor of religion. My away fomething embarraffed-this reafon foon became my God and put me upon providing against the the boastful mad philofophy of the worft.-Poor thoughtless mortal!! Atheift, began to be a glorious Not feeling that God's anger was thing to me. By this fuppofed great against me, and that hell fuperiority of reafon above God's must be the portion of all impeni word, Lhefitated notto efteem him tent finners, I thought to admit the foolish and infignificant who would idea of eternity, and to place my admit any thing which came from felf in the beft poffible fituation, I the pulpit or prefs in favor of vital, agreed to lead a more fri& moral experimental religion. Chriftian-life, and not to fay fo much to the y now appeared a fophifm, re-injury of religion, as I had done. generation a delufion, and any pretentions to religion enthufiafm, and eternal mifery was thoughtideal. My former belief, which my indulgent and honored father had impreffed on my mind, was banifhed. Such being my state of mind, Paine's Age of Reafon found (though I was first reluctant) an advocate in me, I read it attentively, it engaged my affections for a fhort I thought my morality would certainly fecure me from harm. And although I fill difcredited every thing like vital religion, I hoped Ifhould come off well at laft. My bible was ftill left to moulder on the fhelf, and eternal realities were left, withort occupying any of my attention. Thus I was left, in perfect carnal fecurity. Six months ago an enemy to religion, I had an idea that the gofpel was of no value, and confidered it vain to encourage a difpenfation of it, and although I attended public worship pretty fteadily; yet in heart I defpifed the awful, and fublime truths, which were communicated from the word of God. Heaven and hell, were mere founds to me, I utterly defpifed the words, as they flowed from the mouth of a minifter. I thought there was fomething great in difapproving all religious pretenfions. Thus a finner ripe for damnation, was permitted to live from one day unto another, and although, hell, opened to receive its victim, yet God who was boundlefs in compaffion to my precious foul, kept me from deferved wrath. | felf every thing that was neceffary to conftitute a liell. The dependence I had made on my morality vanished like the idle wind, I faw that I had ruined myself, and this without any hope of deliverance. I had heard of a Saviour but alas! I had abufed his mercy. In this fituation I faw that I could not do any thing to merit falvation, and that if fovereign mercy did not come to my affiftance, I must perifh forever. O! what a hell is there prepared for fin-hardened defpifers. "Behold ye despisers and wonder and perifh." Total depravity I now realized, not by fpeculation but by feeling, I faw myfelf dead in trefspaffes and fins, I faw the doctrines of the gofpel were all against me, and that God might juftly caft me off forever, and his character be very glorious. Loft to all hope of recovering my. felf from the fatal difeafe of fin and death; I was, finally, as I truft, brought to lay afide my oppofition to God and bow before his fovereignty and holiness ; acknowledging him to be God. Andnow About four months ago God faw fit to make a difcovery to me, of my calamitous fituation. He fhowed me the vanity of my endeavors, to counteract his benevoTent purposes, by opening my eyes, and giving me to fee the ftrictnefs of his law. At this time human philofophy made me to fhudder, and I was brought to fee that eter-what fhall Ifay, but God be merciful nal woe, was too folemn a reality to me a finner. Father, I have finto fport with, I faw I had lived in a ned against heaven and in thy fight. ftate of perfect dependence on myelf, Pardon my iniquity, O Lord, for it that I was under a moft holy fen- is great. Give me I pray, the fintence of condemnation, that I cere conviction and deep heart-felt had incurred the divine difpleaf- repentance for fin. O give me a ure, by my conftant rebellion, and a deep felf-abafement before thee, that my fituation was deplorable. Humble me O Lord into the duft, I faw a God that was incenfed a- and O may I never have the bafe. gainft me, "the terrors of hell nefs to deny thee. Lay my fins laid hold on me." I faw a juftice, in order before my face, and for that threatened deftruction to un- | Jefus Chrift's fake, give me to be godly men. A fovereignty, holy perpetually an enemy to fin, to and gracious that I had difcarded. thofe fins, which crucified my Lord, Mercy that I had abufud. My and make me truly holy, truly humfins were of a crirafon dye. Alas!ble, truly refigned to thy will. May my foul was loft, I had forfeited infidelity that poifon of my foul be all mercy from God I had reffed entirely removed; and may I trukt his calls, I had flighted proffered in thee for increafing penitence, inpardon, and now I found in my creafing engagednefs and conform ity of heart to thy moft holy and Extract of a Letter from the Rev. YOUR its venom against the principles, and people that bear the mark of evangelical peculiarity, we hope, that if the Lord had meant to flay us, he would not have fhewed us fuch and fuch things, and that we fhall yet be preferved for a light to the Gentiles and to carry his falvation to the ends of the earth. Thus the wall is ftill built in a troublous time, and whilst we leave all events in his hands, we would be found in the path of duty, as the way of fafety. I fhall fay nothing of the increafing and wide fpreading ravages of war, deeply interested as I am in the welfare and profperity of the land wherein I dwell. We have a kingdom that never can be moved, a city whofe maker and builder God is; and looking not to the things which are feen and temporal, but to thofe things which are not feen and eternal, we thank God, take courage and go forward. The intelligence you wish will be gladly communicated by our Secretary, to whom, being at a dittance, I have fent your Magazines and kind letter, and the So Bath, Jan. 31ft, 1801. Brethren beloved in Chrift, OUR favor of September 24th reached me only yef terday. It drew forth the warm effufions of thanksgiving to our common Lord. It is evident the different continents contain the fame holy catholic Church, that the waters of the Atlantic feparate not the communion of faints, and that the redeemed by blood, whofe fins are forgiven them for Christ's name fake, hold faft the bleffed hope of eternal life and rejoice in the profpect of meeting around the throne from every kin-ciety will I am fure receive this dred tongue and nation, when we token of your fraternal affection fhall know eyen as we are known. with delight, and return it with equal affurance of theirs. Meantime, I thought the most accepta ble fervice I could render to my Rev. Brethren and their honorable affociates in the miffionary work, would be to give them an epitome of our late proceedings and prefent ftate of the Miffion with which they feem unacquainted. Nothing will be more grateful to us than to hear your increafing progrefs; and that the cloud no bigger than a man's hand fpreads over your firmament and portends abundance of rain. The glorious difplay of divine grace in many lands adds to our hope, that he whofe right it is, will take to himfelf his great power and reign; and amidit the awful and increafing calamities around us, we of this ifland draw favorable auguries from the diffufion of gofpel light and grace; and tho' infidelity and irreligion lift up their banners as tokens, and bitter enmity breathes The intelligence we receive from Otaheite is highly encouraging, and the requests of the Miffionaries there to be reinforced are urgent. We hope nine or ten, firmly, faithfully, devotedly living together, preach and teach Jefus Chrift, with confiderable attention from the in May, with four perfons, two Dutch and two English, to divide and join Dr. V. in Caffraria, and Mr. Kicherer among the Bofhemen; another of three men and four women all Dutch, was forwarded in November. What our two brethren in Canada have yet done I know not, you are nearer to them than we. The Miffionary at Twilingate, Newfoundland, fends very pleafing ac ance. In my views the South sea still appears to hold out the great door of Miffionary ufefulnefs on the largeft fcale, and I trust he who hath begun the good work will carry it on. natives, and fome apparent impreffion. They are in poffeffion of the fame houfe, and plead with us to fix a stable fettlement on the Ifland, as a focus from which the gofpel could be eafily diffufed on every fide, by a little fchooner, which would vifit any of the tropical regions around them. I wifh greater things had been done for them, but obftructions of various kinds have curtailed the numbers intended to be fent by the Royal Admi-counts of his fuccefs and acceptral. Crook was referved with a defign to be fent with Tomoteiti to the Marquefas, the poor lad is fince dead. Only eleven, I hope, faithful men are now either on their way, or arrived at the place of their deftination. I have good accounts from them dated Auguft 20th, from Rio Janeiro. They are all well, but the convicts with whom they failed and to whom they have been greatly bleffed have fuffered a great mortality. I have furn-with which we may maintain regred them with the choiceft Eng- ular communication, and from fifh Books out of my little library whence the light may be diffused." for the common ufe of the breth- It is afferted by thofe who are on ren at Otaheite, hoping they may the fpot, that a commercial interconvey valuable information, where courfe would probably repay the books must be a treafute to men in expenfe of vifiting them. The fuch a fituation. particulars I cannot detail. The' They will touch at Port Jack-prefent hateful state of war bas fou, and having landed the convicts been fo injurious already, and is proceed to Otaheite. The wars fuch a hindrance that we figh for which have broke out and defola-peace as a Mihopary body. Were ted Tongataboo, have driven the Millionaries from thence, and three who were under the protection of the vanquished chief were flain. Our difficulties are fewer, and our profpects more confirmed, and evidently nothing wanting to accomplish the work with efficacy, but perfeverance, and à firm establishment in one central place,' an American I would have a ship' laden for the fouthern Ocean before" the prefent year expired. We hope however that at this prefent' monient twenty or more are firmly From the Cape of Good Hope we have received very pleafant in-fixed at Otaheite, and unwearied reiligence, as the Magazines will exertions are making to increafe inform you. I laft week heard their number, whenever a provifrom Dr. Vanderkemp, whofe life dental opening shall be made. is preferved in the Caffree country I have haftened to communicate" amidit many dangers. The Bofhe-thefe particulars knowing they will men feem ripe for harveft, the So-be interefting to you. Our fecreciety have fent two embarkations tary will, I doubt not, full your of Miffionaries to the Cape, one I wishes. Mr. Eyre is a man of fingular excellence and to whom the miffion is in an especial manner indebted. Shall I beg a kind remembrance in the hearts of my brethren, and a mention in their prayers of their affectionate friend and brother. T. HAWEIS. stituted, they would give him all the glory, and be humble from the confideration that their zeal has not been greater in his fervice, and that their hearts have not been more warmed with love tohim and to the fouls of their fellow-men. As the general concerns of the inftitution are entrusted to their Report of the Trustees of the Mif-management, the Trustees not onfionary Society of Connecticut. To the MISSIONARY SOCIETY of CONNECTICUT, to be con vened at LITCHFIELD, the third Tuesday of June inftant, the TRUSTEES beg leave to fubmit the following REPORT, with the papers therein referred to. I' 1 ly feel themfelves accountable to God for the faithful discharge of their truft, but also bound in duty to communicate to the Society, whofe agents they are, a particular account, from time to time, of the manner in which the important concerns committed to them are conducted. The narrative, publifhed by direction of the Truftees, laft winter, and fent to the feveral parishes in the ftate, a copy of which is herewith tranfmitted to each member of the fociety, contains a general view of their proceedings and of the labors of Missionaries to the clofe of the year 1800. To repeat in this report what is therein. contained will not be deemed neceffary; as reference can be had to that for any information which is defired. N this their annual report the Trustees feel it to be their duty, firft of all, to acknowledge the good hand of God in fo far feconding their feeble efforts, to advance the caufe of the Redeemer. In answer to the prayers of his people, and in tender pity and compaffion to perifhing finners, he has been gracioufly pleafed to increafe a miffionary fpirit, to open the hearts of many to contribute generoufly to the fupport of mifhons, and to crown the labors of his miffionary fervants, in various places, with great fuccefs. Never did there appear to be fo much need for faithful, zealous Miffionaries as at the prefent time, and never have fo many circumstances confpired to ftimulate the exertions and excite the prayers of the people of God for the furtherance of this defirable object. The Truftees would arrogate nothing to themfelves. If God has enabled them to be in any measure faithful to the impor-board of Trustees. The Rev. Ira tant truft committed to them, and Hart is alfo mentioned as appointed if he has fucceeded any of their to a miffion to the fettlements on attempts to promote the great ob- Black river and other places in the jects for which the Society was in- vicinity. VOL. II. No. 1. E In that narrative the following perfons are mentioned as Miffiona, ries then in the fervice of the fociety, viz. the Rev. Meffrs. Seth Willifton and Jedidiah Bushnell and Mr. Amafa Jerome in the western counties of New-York ftate; the Rev. David Huntington in the northern counties of New-York and Vermont; and the Rev. Jofeph Badger in NewConnecticut, all appointed to continue during the pleasure of the |