The issue of tracts during the year has been 75,708 sold, 1,957 sent with the last year's Report to subscribers, and 9,585 voted to different persons for gratuitous distribution; making a total of eighty-seven thousand two hundred and fifty--the net proceeds of which amount to 205l. 8s. 6d. The Committee, considering into how alarming a state the country had been brought, by the wide circulation of cheap publications, designed to inveigle the poor, and excite them to rebellion, were induced to make very liberal grants of their two last tracts, of each of which, a second edition has been put to the press. Of No. LVIII. entitled "Infidelity Exposed," 5000 copies were sent to judicious persons, to disseminate amongst the poor resident in the disturbed districts;-especially in Manchester, Nottingham, Durham, Sheffield, Preston, York, Leeds, Bradford, (in Yorkshire,) and Carlisle. A" Religious Tract Society" has been established in the diocess of Durham, of which the venerable Bishop of that diocess is patron; and tracts of the Church Tract Society, together with those published by "The Society for promoting Christian Knowledge," and "The Cheap Repository" tracts, are to be placed, and those only, on their list." A Religious Tract and Book Society for Ireland," as our readers are aware, has been instituted in Dublin, by noblemen and gentlemen of that country; who are anxious, by a supply of good and cheap publications, to undersell those pernicious books which now corrupt the reading classes among the poor. In furtherance of their object, they have requested permission to reprint, with such alterations as may appear necessary, each of the tracts calculated for circulation in Ireland. With this the Committee have readily complied; and to encourage the sale request of tracts, has likewise offered to send them on commission to persons resident in that country, and pay freight and duty. They have, in consequence, shipped a large order lately to the "Religious Tract Society" at Cork. The society's tracts are so much approved of in the islands of Guernsey and Jersey, that some of them, translated into French, appear regularly in a periodical work recently established there, entitled Magasin de l'Eglise Anglicane." Besides which three numbers, have been published in a separate form, as French tracts. แ A letter has been received from the corresponding secretary of a Religious Tract Society" formed at Baltimore, expressive of the desire of that society to receive and send occasional communications. The Committee gladly acceded to the proposal. The Committee have likewise received a letter from the Right Rev. Dr. White, Bishop of Pennsylvania, with a present of tracts published by "The Society for the Advancement of Christianity in Pennsylvania," and by "The Episcopal Female Tract Society of Philadelphia." They express their hope, that the unhallowed rivalry-not to say, bitter animosity-which has, on too many occasions, displayed itself between Great Britain and the United States of America, will gradually decline; as, by means of religious and benevolent institutions, the great mass of the community in both countries becomes more deeply imbued with Christian feeling, and a cordial interchange of good offices becomes more frequent. They conclude their Report, by adverting to the recent death of their late friend and fellow-labourer, the Rev. J. Neilson, "the orphan's instructor and friend; whose meek and gentle spirit has been translated, they trust, from a world, where the ambitious aspire and the proud prevail, to that peaceful kingdom which is the pilgrim's home and resting-place." AFRICA.-COLONIZATION SOCIETY. Extract of a letter from the Rev. Mr. BACON, to a gentleman in Philadelphia, dated Sierra Leone, 10th March, 1820. We arrived on the 9th at 4 P. M. had, generally, a pleasant passage; have been sick, but all are well and in high spirits We were only 28 days from soundings to soundings; we have had considerable intercourse with the Sierra Leoneans, and find a general sentiment in our favour. now. The slave trade is driving on at a bloody rate all along the coast, except here and down the Sherbro country. Vessels are every week brought in and condemned here, having fifty, one hundred, two hundred, or more slaves on board. We have the most favourable account of the Sherbro country and its people. The white population of this place is thin, and hold all the offices of any importance. The coloured settlers seem to be a happy people, growing in prosperity indeed this seems to be a thriving place. This town (Freetown) is thronged with native Africans, either Timanys or Kroomen. They are as naked as nature, with the exception of a cloth cap, or hat, on the head, and a cloth or handkerchief about the loins: they are a fine, athletic, hardy, strong, useful race of people. The Timanys I am not able to speak of with accuracy, further than that they are said to be a factious and dishonest race; their country is up the Sierra Leone River. But of the Kroomen I can say more. By looking at your map you will find between Cape Mesurado and Cape Palmas, two thirds distance from the former, a place called Settra Kroo, that is at least 400 miles from Sierra Leone. The Kroomen come all the way along shore with their canoes up to this place here they have a town, where they live and accommodate themselves, and labour for about $4 per month; they occasionally return to see their families and carry home their money. When they have got a Krooman's competency, they retire upon it and enjoy it with their wives and children. They are a faithful, honest, kind people, and without them the Sierra Leoneans could not live. "We no bring our wives and children here; we come for get money enough, and go to Settra Kroo again," is their language to us. Would not Settra Kroo be a noble place for a missionary station? "Krooman no kill." They are covered with tatooed devices, and have "plenty" of sophies, gree-grees and charms about them: a hog's or leopard's tooth, a smooth bone, a little bag about the ear, &c. John Me, the first that came to us, on hearing our evening prayers, and a word of exhortation from a coloured man, said, after listening attentively for a moment, "He speaks for God!" I asked him if he went to church; his reply was, "all for go to church when he mind to." I asked "do you sabby (know) God?" His reply was, "every body sabby God."-His reply was given with exactly such a self-confident air, as I have seen in the manner of many a "moralist," who expects his morality to save him. I was at a loss, for a moment, to determine whether the heathen had learned from the moralist or the moralist from the heathen; but another moment solved the doubt, both learned it from the Devil.-You may depend on it there is work for us here; there is work for missionaries; for teachers; for good men of all grades. I save a corner for a later date, and stop for this moment. I add, after a ramble in the Kroo Village,-I am struck with wonder at the appearance of native Africans. The sickly and depressed countenance of a Philadelphia coloured man is not to be seen amongst them. A noble aspect, a dignified mien, a frank, and open, and bold wildman's demeanor !-Sir, it is worthy a voyage to Africa to see the Kroomen. I was present at one of their amusements, not unlike a sort of play or opera. Speakers, accompanied by a pleasant music on a kind of shepherd's pipe; there were more than 100 present, seated on the ground in a circle-the speakers and actors in the centre. could not understand them. I was there again, beginning to puzzle myself in the mazes of speculation about the origin or this. I could almost persuade myself that they were becoming fast civilized, as theatrical amusements seem to indicate a state of civilization above the savage life. I suppose the play I saw, and those performed in Philadelphia, have the one about as much religion as the other. Adieu my dear friend; the Lord bless us and you. EGYPT. S. BACON. Remarks by the Rev. Wm. Jowett, submitted to the Committee of the By circulating copies of the Report of the Malta Bible Society, I endeavoured to prepare the way for a subscription at Cairo. Many of the Europeans resident in that city are favourably disposed to the Bible Society; but I was requested by Mr. Salt, in consideration of the state of commerce at that moment, to delay pressing the subject, and he charges himself to bring forward the business at a more suitable time. In the mean while, I have received as a beginning towards this object the sum of 500 piastres, of which 100 was a donation from the Prussian nobleman resident with us at Cairo, and 100 from the gentleman with whom I was travelling to Jerusalem; the remaining 300 were contributions of some months standing, and were passed to me through the hands of a person from whom we are led to expect further assistance of a truly valuable nature. Labouring singly with his own hands, maintaining himself in a respectable competency, and thus earning leisure sufficient for the study of Arabic, he has formed the intention of gratifying his curiosity, at some future period, by travelling in Syria and Persia; and in his letter to this Committee, offers his services gratuitously to distribute the scriptures. From the Coptic Patriarch I procured a copy of the four Gospels, written in Coptic and Arabic, in parallel columns. He informed me likewise, that at Boosh they have a preparatory school, where about twenty youths are trained for the church: afterwards they are removed to the monastery of Mar Antonius, in the mountains, about three days' journey eastward of the Nile. Here, in number about fifty, they prepare themselves for the higher stations in their church; from this place the Patriarch himself, the Coptic Bishops in Egypt, and the present Abuna of Abyssinia proceed. It is very well known, that while in these preparatory studies of various churches in the east, great attention is paid to the recitation of prayers and liturgical offices, and to the performance of extremely rigid mortifications; yet, in the lapse of ages the original word of God has fallen into comparative neglect, and does not receive that diligent, well-grounded, and persevering study which it so pre-eminently claims. The Holy Scriptures in an entire form, are to be found in but few places; while that priest would be thought unpardonably remiss, who should not be furnished with the book of his church prayers. May the six Arabic Bibles which I consigned to the Patriarch to be forwarded to Boosh, and twelve for Mar Antonius, find diligent and humble readers, and excite a greater thirst for the pure word of God-a thirst which the Bible Society will labour to satisfy! These copies, together with twenty-one which I sold at this time in Cairo, six of them being bought by a priest to send to Damietta; together likewise with twelve more sold at Rosetta to the Copts, who serve as writers in the extensive granaries of the Bashaw, will make 51, that is with the 55 mentioned in my former letter; a total of 106 Arabic Bibles, besides several copies of the scriptures in other languages, as Hebrew, Greek, Armenian, French, Italian, German, &c. The Italian Bible was anxiously asked for. I saw the list of subscribers to it collected last year by Mr. Burckhardt in Alexandria and Cairo, which was nu merous. In the former part of July, I quitted this populous capital of one of the most ancient of nations, not without feelings of regret, having experienced there so many acts of kindness, mingled with gratitude to him who had watched over my path through the whole length of the land of Egypt, and preserved me while surrounded by the pestilence that walketh in darkness." I felt, indeed, that this last mentioned circumstance had considerably abridged, during three months, my means of active usefulness in Cairo; but it was the will of the Lord, and he who "maketh all things work together for good to those that love him," may, perhaps, at some future period, show why this dispensation was best for myself, and best, possibly, for the interest of the Bible Society. Certainly, if in the course of years this Committee should find itself deeply engaged to the Abyssinian nation, it may prove that the hours spent by me in Ethiopic studies, were not lost time; although to render effectual services to Abyssinia would require many more persons, than one individual, wholly devoted to that branch. In Alexandria I had the pleasure to see our Consul, Mr. Lee, furnished with a good supply of scriptures from this Committee; a suitable return for his very zealous and successful services in aid of our funds. It gave me also sincere delight to witness the exact manner in which he had begun to register the receipt and manner of disposal of these books; literally charging himself, as he expresses it, with the business of a Committee of Correspondence. As quarantine was still observed in Alexandria, Mr. Lee had not as yet been able to make the distribution which he proposes; a proportion, namely, of these Bibles and Testaments to each of the 'Consuls, in order that they may make a further distribution of them among the shipping of their respective nations. From Alexandria it was my first intention to have returned hither direct; but receiving an urgent invitation to meet Dr. Pinkerton at Smyrna, I took ship for that place, where I arrived after a tedious passage of 26 days. After remaining there more than five weeks, I was eventually disappointed of the main object of my visit; and finding my health require my return home, I concluded an absence from Malta, of nearly ten months, on the 4th of last month. A few remarks of a general nature will close this brief report: Egypt, as having fallen under my more immediate observations, claims the first place. Here we behold, though in circumstances of great depression and ignorance, one body of professing Christians more numerous |