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THE

MISSIONARY OBSERVER.

MAY, 1883.

Contributions for the Foreign Missions.

It is particularly requested that all Contributions for the next Annual Report may be forwarded to the Treasurer or Secretary on or before the 31st of May, as the accounts for the year must be closed on that day.

In preparing their Lists of Contributions will the local Secretaries kindly enter (1) Public and Sacramental Collections; (2) Contributions by Adults; (3) by Juveniles. Sums under 5s. should be entered as "Small sums."

Nominations for the Committee.

LAY MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.-Under the new regulations all the members of the Committee, consisting of twenty, retire every year. Sixteen are chosen by ballot at the Annual Members' Meeting, and four by the newly-elected sixteen.

Any subscriber, or subscribing church, may nominate any number of gentlemen to serve on the Committee. It is, however, very important that no one should be nominated who is not known to be willing to serve, if elected.

Nominations for the ballot must be in the hands of the Secretary, the Rev. W. Hill, Mission House, 60, Wilson Street, Derby, on or before the 5th day of June. No name can be received after that date.

MINISTERIAL MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.-New Regulation.— "That in future each Conference, at its last meeting before the Association, shall nominate certain ministers in that Conference to represent it on the Foreign Mission Committee; it being understood that all ministers of subscribing churches shall be eligible to attend as heretofore, providing their expenses be not charged to the Society."

"That the number of ministerial members be sixteen, divided as follows: Midland Conference, 6; Yorkshire, 3; Lincolnshire, 2; London, 2; Warwickshire, 2; Cheshire, 1."

The attention of the Conferences is directed to the above regulation, and the Secretaries will oblige by sending the nominations as early as possible to the Secretary of the Foreign Mission.

Sunday-School Treat at Cuttack.

BY MISS BARRASS.

ON Monday, February 10th, we had our Oriya Sunday-school treat. The teachers and scholars, about 280 in number, met at 2.30 in the chapel compound, where two tents had been put up. One was for the girls, and in the other the provisions were kept ready for distribution. This year they did not have curry and rice, as at the last treat, but poorees-a native cake, something like a pancake-native sweets, English cake, and plantains. Those who wish to know what poorees are, and how they are made, must come in imagination to a small tent, at a little distance from the others. Here are five men, professional cooks, busy after their own fashion, which is not energetic. At the farthest end of the tent a fire is made in a hole in the ground, and over it a vessel filled with ghee, or clarified butter, presided over by the cook, a heathen man with a very solemn visage, and his hair tied in the orthodox little knob at the back. Next are two men sitting side by side, armed with rolling-pins, and in front of each is a tray, also a heap of flour in a cloth. Two more men complete the group-the first, sitting near the door-way, has a large basket of flour by his side, from which he takes a quantity and puts it on a brass plate before him; then he rubs a little ghee in the flour, mixes it with water into a paste, which, having worked sufficiently, he passes on to the next man, who holds the paste in his left hand, while with his right he pulls off little pieces, squeezes them into balls, and throws them on the cloth by the men with rollingpins, who dip the pieces into flour, roll them a little, dip them in flour again, and roll them out into large thin cakes, then throw them to the cook, who puts several at once into the boiling ghee, and after two or three minutes takes them out with a kind of ladle, and a long stick-which stick I had suspicions also did service as a poker-then holding them over the ghee to drain, he throws them into a large basket. Having seen the whole process of pooree making, we have no wish to taste, especially as we saw that the men, who sat on the ground, had their knees or feet in the flour, as seemed most comfortable to them.

Returning to the tent, we had some time to wait before the poorees were ready. Meanwhile the boys were running races for sweets, and boys and girls flying after our superintendent, as he scattered sweets in all directions. When all was ready, the boys were seated on benches, arranged in two long rows in the shade by the chapel, while the girls were in a tent. They were very orderly, and waited patiently till their turn came. We, who looked after the girls, first carried round the poorees in a large basket, which took three of us to lift; they went two or three times round, and were followed by native sweets, and then English cake, One little girl, not contented with one piece at a time like the rest, seized two pieces of cake and put them in her cloth; but the teacher, who took it round, quietly put her hand in and took out both pieces, so that through trying to get two the little girl had none, to the amusement of her companions. Lastly, plantains were given to them, and when all had finished we went to the new school-room, where the prizes were to be distributed. The room was quite full. The prizes were books (Oriya and English), umbrellas of different colours (chiefly red and blue), knives, and pencils. Some of the girls had brass vessels, with which they were very pleased, especially one or two who are going to be married. The prizes were for those who had been most successful in the examination, which was held in conference week, two prizes in each class. The young man who took the first prize in the first class has now become a teacher; the girl who took the first prize has left the school to be married. There was also a prize for attendance in each class, and two conduct prizes, one for the best boy in the school, the other for the best girl, decided by the teachers. The attendance prize in the infant class was given to a little girl with roguish face and dimpled cheeks; her name is Soojorna, and she was very delighted to receive a tiny brass vessel as a reward. The meeting closed with singing and prayer, and they went away, looking forward to the continuation

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of their treat on the following Wednesday, when a magic lantern was to be exhibited.

On Wednesday evening the magic lantern was exhibited in the school-room. Long before the time for opening, most of the scholars had arrived, but were not allowed to come in until six o'clock, when one door was opened with three to guard it, as all wanted to rush in at once. The smallest children were sent in first, and were seated in two rows on the mat in front, another row on the lowest forms, then a row of girls and a row of boys, according to size, so that the tallest were at the back. As it was only for the scholars, no others were allowed to come in until they were all seated, and then there was not room for many more. At 6.30 the proceedings commenced by several views of the Arctic Regions, Mr. Miller giving short explanations of each picture, and asking questions on the most familiar ones. There was also the history of Joseph, and the last picture of that set being Jacob and Joseph meeting, most of the boys began to make a sound of kissing, which the superintendent speedily checked. They were very ready to answer the questions on the different scenes, and when 'Daniel in the Lions' Den' appeared on the sheet, there was a chorus of voices offering information. At that point we sang one verse in English of 'Dare to be a Daniel.' Presently John Bunyan appeared, and there was a general shout of John Bunyan.' Scenes in his life followed, and the 'Pilgrim's Progress.' At the first picture, the pilgrim's starting, we sang one verse of the Oriya translation of 'Whither pilgrims,' in which all joined at the top of their voices, as it is a very well-known hymn. The picture representing the pilgrims as they caught the first glimpse of the Celestial City was a beautiful one; we sang, while looking at it, another verse of an Oriya hymn. Towards the end some comic slides were shown, which caused great amusement, especially one of a boy in the act of throwing a snowball at a man walking in front of him, who, suddenly turning round, received it on his nose; also an old lady knitting with a high cap on her head, which a monkey, coming behind, twitched off, leaving her quite bald; and a mouse gnawing a candle, when a cat darted out and the mouse was gone, while the cat rolled its eyes round and round in a most laughable manner, only in this case the pupils of its eyes moved about, and, there being some little defect in the slide, the pupils kept running out of the eyes altogether, to the manifest delight of the audience. Perhaps the one that caused the most uproarious merriment was a huge ferocious tiger, which turned its eyes round and round, as if considering which boy or girl would make the daintiest morsel, at the same time opening its mouth and revealing a formidable row of teeth. Then came the Prince of Wales, and lastly the Queen, when we sang 'God save the Queen.' We finished by singing the doxology, and Mr. Miller closed with prayer. Then the doors were opened, and the room was soon cleared, all having undoubtedly enjoyed the evening immensely.

Our native school is increasing in numbers, about thirty new ones have come since the beginning of the year, and our superintendent is expecting others. There is no doubt it is greatly owing to his untiring efforts; he visits all the scholars himself, and sets apart two evenings in every week for that purpose. He throws himself with great enthusiasm into everything he undertakes, and, besides, is wonderfully patient and persevering, so that it is a great advantage to the school to have such a superintendent, as well as to the teachers, who all respect him."

A Visit to Choga.

BY REV. T. BAILEY.

BEFORE leaving Cuttack for Berhampore I had the pleasure, in company with Bro. Buckley, of a visit to Choga. This, as many of our friends know, is a purely native Christian settlement in one of the Tributary States, and is both of long standing and increasing importance. We left Cuttack on Saturday, Jan. 6th. The Irrigation works, which in other respects and in other parts of the district have proved so advantageous, have operated injuriously in regard to the journey here by increasing difficulties which were already numerous

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MISSIONARY OBSERVER.

enough. The anicut, by preventing the escape of the water, renders a ferry boat always necessary; whereas, formerly, the river was fordable during the greater part of the year, and on this occasion the stream had divided so that two boats were required, and we had to wait for one of these a considerable time. But once across the river and into the jungle how delightful the renewal of old experiences! how keen and brilliant the air is—how fresh and beautiful the tangle of trees, and shrubs, and flowers-and even the monotonous ditty of the bearers was soothing and restful after the weary grind of engines and screw, and rail and tram, and the never-ending hurry-scurry of so-called civilization. Our visit occurred at an auspicious season. The people were drinking deep into the joys of harvest. The crops had been unusually plentiful, and every threshing floor was filled with the kindly fruits of the earth. The people looked bright and prosperous, though, characteristically enough, the rajah, seeing the bountiful harvest, was largely increasing, and in some cases doubling, his demand for rent. We were conducted for quarters to the School-house, the bungalow being already too much occupied; and then came the pleasure of getting amongst the people again. Some have been unjustly accused, and wish to clear themselves; others are poor, and require help; and others, though not very poor, would still not object to a substantial New Year's gift. Some are sick and need medicine, and others have kindly enquiries to make as well as welcome information to give. One makes a handsome acknowledgment of wrong-doing, and seeks restoration to the church. The candidates standing over from former church-meetings are reported upon, and new names are mentioned. Two of the former were received on Sunday morning; and as the water was near and nothing to hinder they were forthwith baptized, and received into the church in the afternoon. All the services were to me intensely enjoyable, and appeared to be so to others too. In the evening there was a Bible-class and singing, and on the following morning various accounts had to be overhauled, and sundry balances to be disposed of, as well as the schools to be examined; the results of the latter being very satisfactory; and shortly after noon on Monday we left again for Cuttack, after a very pleasant, and I hope useful, visit. The people are simple, affectionate, and hearty; not perfect, but loveable and trustful, and of a kind it is pleasant to work amongst. May the Lord bless them with the blessing of Abraham and multiply them yet more exceedingly, that they may become a multitude of people.

Berhampore, Feb. 16th, 1883.

Notes of a Preaching Tour in Sambalpur.

Sambalpur, Nov. 24th, 1882.

MY DEAR BROTHER HILL,-We have just returned from a tour, so I will send you a few lines before I go out again, for it is difficult to find time and opportunity for writing whilst out on tour.

We left Sambulpur on Oct. 12th. I say we, for my dear wife and children accompanied me, as well as the senior preacher, Thoma. He, however, was suffering from lumbago, and this was much increased by the damp atmosphere (for we had heavy rain for a day and a night soon after we started), so that he had to return home, and Babu Daniel Das came out in his stead. We remained out nearly six weeks, getting home on Nov. 20th. During this time thirteen markets and very many villages were visited; whilst at most of the larger villages that lay in our track we remained a couple of days.

Our route lay first along the Raipur road as far as Sohela, a little more than forty miles from Sambalpur. Then we turned southwards to visit a large town named Bijipur, about ten miles from Sohela. Again we turned eastward, and thus continued our journey on a line nearly parallel to the Raipur road. As we visited villages on both sides of our way, we covered in this way a strip of country forty miles long by about thirty broad (or some 1,200 square miles).

Thirteen markets were attended; this includes two that were visited by Kols, whom we sent merely to sell books. Once two markets fell out on the same day; so we attended one, and we sent off two of our Kols (who carried

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the tent) to the other. They seemed quite proud of their errand, and they sold thirteen copies of the gospel and two larger books. They reported that everybody wanted poetical books, and unfortunately just then our stock had run out. The second time they also sold a little; but the head master of the school opposed them, and dissuaded the people from buying. My two Kols were somewhat indignant at this. This Kol agency is one that I hope to make more use of in the future. The men seem reliable, and they have no prejudices to prevent them selling the books.

We disposed in one way or another of a goodly number of books and tracts -probably not less than 2,000. I took some 9,000 kauries, or shells, in payment for about 450 tracts; but in disposing of the shells we lost a little, for it was but rarely that we could get a pice for sixty shells. Sometimes we had to give eighty, but more generally seventy. The total of our sales reached very nearly thirty rupees. Surely all this seed will not be sown in vain.

We visited two places near together with names so similar in pronounciation that they are often confounded-Bârâgâdâ and Bâráhguda. The meanings of the names are widely different, however, for they may be freely rendered respectively, the house of the king, and the house of pigs. The latter name was not unsuitable, for the village was physically and morally very filthy. A brahmin there gloried in what should be their shame, and both he and the head man would certainly be included amongst those "fools" who "make a mock of sin."

There were many interesting incidents that we met with. In some cases the head men of villages received us very kindly indeed-in fact, treated us quite as friendly visitors-and in more than one instance I think it was for our work's sake. I had much talk with the head man of a village named Chakerkend, who seemed very much impressed by our message. Whilst at Sohela the schoolmaster, son of the head man, and three or four other young men, came repeatedly to my tent for conversation-the last time sitting till far into the night, listening and asking questions on the theme, the love of God for sinners. I hope we may hear more of these young men. But there was one incident that touched me almost to tears. Daniel was talking to a group of people in the village of Suktapali ("the dried up village"). Amongst them was an old man of the washerman caste, who was listening very attentively as Daniel was pointing out how sins might be forgiven, and forgiven now, at once. Old Lachman Seth jumped up, in spite of his years, and asked, "Is that for me?" and when answered in the affirmative, fairly danced and clapped his hands for joy. I believe it was the good Spirit's work, and that He has revealed to this babe in knowledge the things hidden from the wise and prudent. Afterwards, in talking to me, he said, "The people call me an 'old stump,' for I have no relatives, save my wife, living, and they say because I have no son to conduct my funeral rites, I shall be lost; but that is not true, is it?" He said he was one hundred years old; I should judge he is about seventy. He was very anxious to get hold of the name Jesus Christ, and was concerned because he could not pronounce it well. He asked me if there was any of the names that he had been used to that meant the same; so I mentioned one name that is used only to designate the one supreme God, Creator and Preserver of all, and told him to use that name, remembering that God had taken upon Him a human body, and in it had suffered and died for our sins. I said it did not matter so much about the name if we had regard to the right being. Some called Major M- -the Deputy Commissioner, and some the Tillah Sahib, and some the Bara or Big Sahib-but they all meant the same individual. I cautioned him against the use of those names of Hindoo incarnations whose lives were full of sin, and who could not therefore be true incarnations of God He seemed to understand much of what we said; but that Jesus Christ died for his sin, that was plain, and that he seized upon with joy. We shall try not to lose sight of him, and I hope may see him again soon. The people who stood round were much impressed with the old man's joy. I gave him a book, which he would get read to him-he could not see to read, though when we sang he tried his best to join with us in the chorus with which each verse ended. I must close my letter here or it will be too long for the Magazine. Pray for us. We shall reap, if we faint not. Yours affectionately,

J. G. PIKE.

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