UNITED KINGDOM: ELEVENTH REPORT, State of the Funds. THE Income of the year has exceeded that of any year preceding, and has amounted to 6361. 8s. 8d. ; of which 275l. 9s. 10d. consisted of Subscriptions and Contributions, and 360/. 18s. 10d. arose from the Sale of Tracts. The Payments amounted to 6491. 15s. 6d. Progress of the Society. The Dean of Bristol and the Archdeacons of Cleveland and Ely are become Vice-Presidents of the Society. Societies have been formed in the Dioceses of Durham and Gloucester, under the patronage of the respective Bishops, which circulate the Tracts of the Society. Branch Associations having been formed, during the year, at Wolverhampton and at Derby, the Committee enumerate Thirteen Societies and Associations in England and Ireland which circulate the Society's publications. Religious Tract Societies among Episcopalians at Baltimore and at Boston, in the United States, have reprinted some of the Society's Tracts. A third Institution has been formed at St. Paul's Church Philadelphia, for the purpose of circulating the Homilies of the English Church, and such Tracts as are calculated to cherish and diffuse the spirit of her Reformers and Martyrs. New Tracts. While large editions of the Tracts which were out of print have been prepared, the following New Tracts have been issued: An Appeal to Holy Scripture for the Churchman's Confirmation in the great Doctrine of the TRINITY, to the profession of which he was dedicated at his Baptism. The Festivals of the United Church of England and Ireland; or, a short and plain Explanation of her Services for those occasions: Part the Second, March, 1823. 129 containing the Festivals designed to the Evangelists and commemorate Apostles. The Martyrs of the Reformation in England. The Lord's Prayer explained to Young Persons. which forms the Sixty-seventh in Of the Tract on the Trinity, the general series, it is said— Testimonies to that fundamental docIt presents a summary of Scripture trine of our faith; and thereby furnishes an antidote to the infidel and deistical principles which are so awfully and widely disseminated in publications of every size and shape in the present day, Sunday-School Tracts. The other three Tracts above for the use of Children and Sunday mentioned are additions to the series series, which now contains nine, it Schools. On the Tracts of this is remarked- 1 The Teacher who devotes to this ob ject several hours of the Sabbath, will auxiliary to his labours, by furnishing find this Society to be a safe and a useful him with a series of Tracts (either as school-books or as rewards) adapted to the capacities of children; and calculated principles of religion, but also to train not only to infuse into their minds the with the Establishment, by shewing them up in conscientious communion them that its doctrines and discipline, its creeds and formularies, are founded upon, and in close accordance with the Word of God. Issue and Stock of Tracts. The number printed during the is a stock of Tracts on hand amount- Anti-Popish Tracts. peculiarly calculated for this country, that is, for circulation among the poorer Members of the Established Church. The arguments which they furnish in support of our Establishment, enable the poor man to resist successfully the subtle attempts which are continually made by his Popish Neighbours to undermine his attachment to the Church. They are particularly adapted for circulation in Schools. The Lives of the Martyrs, and some of your other Tracts, are given as rewards in the School which I myself more immediately superin tend; and the children are so anxious to procure them, that every penny which they can obtain is laid out in the purchase of them: they are encouraged to this by the practice which we adopt of having their Tracts bound, when they shall be enabled to procure a sufficient number to form a volume. The Committee add Your Committee have taken the hint suggested to them, and have ordered the Biographical Tracts, which are published by the Society, to be bound and sold to the public on the most reasonable terms which the Society can afford. This volume illustrates the influence of the Protestant Faith in the holy lives and exemplary deaths of Wickliffe, Archbishop Cranmer, Bishops Latimer, Ridley, Hooper, Farrar, and Jewel; Lady Jane Grey, King Edward the VI. Frith, Bilney, Taylor, Gilpin, Bainham, Lambert, Tyndall, and Bradford; and to them is prefixed the Tract entitled "A short History of the State of the Church in England, from the first introduction of Christianity to the establishment of the blessed Reformation under Queen Elizabeth." Continent. FRANCE. PROTESTANT MISSIONARY SOCIETY. Formation and Objects of the Society. THE establishment of this Society, with its appointment of the Rev. Jonas King to the Mediterranean, was noticed at p. 23 of the Survey. We shall here give some particulars. A Meeting was held on the 3d. of September, at the house of Mr. Wilder, an American Merchant resident in Paris, and a zealous pro moter of benevolent and religious plans. This Meeting was attended by the Presidents of the Reformed and Lutheran Consistories, by other Pastors with Lay Members of the two Churches, and by various Foreign Protestants then in Paris; the Rev. among whom were Daniel Wilson the Rev. S. S. Wilson, on his return from Malta to this country- the Rev. Jonas King, of the United States-and the Wesleyan Missionaries in France, Messrs. Cook and Croggon. The two following Regulations point out the course to be at first chiefly kept in view :— -That this Society shall seek to enlighten the public mind, by means of the press, as to the character and importance of the different Missions set on foot among Pagans, by Protestant Missionary Societies; and shall publish what it may think proper to that end, whether original, or translations of the most interesting publications that have appeared in foreign countries in favour of the Missionary Cause. -That this Society shall procure convenient premises for an establishment. for the reception of Young Persons, to be recommended by the different Missionary Societies already in existence; as, The Bâsle Missionary Society, the Church Missionary Society, the Wesleyan Missionary Society, the London Missionary Society, &c.; to whom it may be necessary to study some of those Oriental Languages, for the acquisition of which Paris presents peculiar advantages. In reference to this last Regulation it is stated- One special object of the Society will be to facilitate the acquisition of languages, particularly the Oriental, by the Missionaries of all the various Societies of Europe and America. The Committee will take them under their special protection, and preserve them from the inconveniences and dangers connected with a residence in such a city. Mission of the Rev. Jonas King to the Mediterranean. The Members did not intend, however, to limit the Society to these objects; and therefore readily embraced the opportunity of contributing their aid to the direct work of Missions. It is stated on this subject We have already commenced our operations, by engaging to support Mr. King, as a Missionary, for a given period, in Palestine. Mr. King is a native of the United States; and has been some time in Paris, for the acquisition of Arabic, which he is destined to teach in the College of Amherst, on his return to America. The death of Mr. Parsons, the Missionary sent out by the American Board of Missions, has determined Mr. King to proceed to the Holy Land; that he may continue the labours interrupted by the death of Mr. Parsons, and obtain a perfect knowledge of colloquial Arabic. Not being able to correspond with his friends in America, without considerable loss of time, the Paris Com mittee has authorised and enabled him to proceed immediately. As a subscription of 2500 francs had already been raised toward the expenses, for the first year, of the Mission of Mr. King, Mr. Wilder proposed to the Society to receive that sum, and take him up for the first year, as their Missionary, which would cost an additional sum of 500 francs. This was agreed to; so that the Society will begin by sending a Missionary to Jerusalem. Name and Officers of the Society. The title of the Institution is"The Society for Evangelical Missions among People not Christians, established at Paris." On the 4th of November the following Officers were appointed for the direction of its concerns : President, The Committee consist of Five Ministers, with Baron de Stael and Six other Lay Members of the Protestant Church. Address of the Committee. From an Address, signed by the President and Secretary, and circulated in December, we translate a few passages :- The Protestants of France, placed by Divine Providence at the present day in circumstances more favourable to the influence of the sacred truths of the Gospel than at any antecedent period, have begun to manifest a degree of zeal for the interests of Religion, which promises, under the Divine blessing, the most solid and durable advantages. The establishment of Bible and Reli gious Tract Societies, the erection of of new Congregations, the urgent demany Places of Worship, the formation mands for larger number of Ministers, the increasing attendance and devotion at Public Worship both in the towns and in the country, all testify that our Holy Religion is regaining its empire over us. While these facts should call forth lively gratitude to the Dispenser of all good, they may justly awaken the most ardent hopes in relation to the future. Occupied in the cares of their own Churches, and feeling themselves under primary obligation to promote the pure religion of the Gospel in their native land, yet the Protestants of France are desirous of taking their share in the efforts by which their Brethren of other countries, attached to the different branches of the Great Family of Evangelical Christians, are seeking to propagate the Light of the Gospel, and to extend the Kingdom of our Divine Redeemer. After citing various instances of the influence of Missions in the increase of piety at home, the Committee add United, for the advancement of this Holy Cause, to zealous Christians of other lands, what spiritual treasures of Light and Grace may we not accumu late on ourselves, for the prosperity of our Churches and the edification of our souls! There is happily in France a great number of Protestants who feel all the force of these reflections; and who are anxious for the opportunity of uniting to their efforts for the melioration of the religious state of their own land, benevolent exertions for the conversion of the wretched inhabitants of countries deprived of the light of the Gospel. Wishes on this subject, cherished by persons who had no mutual intercourse, sufficiently attest the general tendency of minds toward this important object. In reference to the Society's design of affording facilities for the instruction of Missionaries, it is said This Institution, placed under the superintendence of a respectable Minister, will be open to Missionaries of all Foreign Societies, as well as to those Young Persons whom the Holy Spirit, we doubt not, will awaken, in the bosom of our Communions, to carry the good news of Salvation by the sacrifice of Christ, even to the most distant regions of the Globe. The Address concludes with this touching appeal :— We cannot close this statement of our designs and our hopes, without entreat ing our friends never to forget, that, while we ourselves enjoy the knowledge of the Gospel and the numberless bless ings of which the Gospel is the source, hundreds of millions of men, like wandering sheep, are utterly ignorant of Him, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Let us ever have present the recollection of what we owe to that merciful Mediator, who was slain to redeem us to God by His blood. Let us recall to mind how little we have to this moment done to aid His glorious Cause. Let us have HIM unceasingly before our eyes, who was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities whose agonies calm ours, and purchase peace for all who believe. That mouth, which kept silence before His murderers, but which spake when maladies were to be healed and souls to be saved that mouth, may it not seem to open, in order to address to each of us these tender but cutting words, this reproach at once mild and awful-" Behold what I have done for thee! What hast thou done for Me among my brethren? Hast thou made them partakers in the blessings, which I granted to thee that thou mightest scatter them abroad? Hast thou carried to them, so far as thou hast - HIM, had opportunity, the knowledge of My Salvation? Knowest thou not, that My Gospel must be preached to every creature?" Let us not delay to answer to this appeal of our Saviour-as yet full of mercy and love, but one day our Judge. Let us not forget that the time is short-that the day is far spent, and the night cometh when_no man can work. Whatever, therefore, our hand findeth to do, let uş do it with our might. Let us be stedfust, immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as we know that our labour will not be in vain in the Lord. Monthly Meeting for Prayer, We noticed, in the Introductory Remarks to the last Survey, the establishment at Paris of a Meeting for Prayer. It is by this Society On this subject it is remarked, in that the measure has been adopted. the Address just quoted The Friends of Missions having long pursued, in various parts of the world, the salutary practice of uniting on the o'clock in the evening, to implore the First Monday in every month, at seven out-pouring of the Holy Spirit on their respective Churches and Countries—on the labours of all the pious Associations, scattered over the face of the whole globe, which concur in promoting the the work of Missions among the HeaKingdom of Christ-and especially on then; the Committee intend to establish day and at the same hour, in one of the Meetings of a like nature, on the same Evangelical Churches of the metropolis. They trust that the Protestant Christians of France will unite with them herein, on the same days and at the same hours. To promote this union in fervent intercession, the Committee have circulated an Address on the subject, part of which we shall ex tract: The union of the Children of God, and the need which they felt of drawing near to Him in prayer, were, at all times, signs of the presence of the Lorda in the midst of His Church, and effects of the influence of the Holy Spirit on the hearts of the faithful: the first symptoms of the decline of religion have ever been, the absence of Charity, and the loss of that spirit of Supplication, which is at once the indication of spiritual life and the means of its sustenance. The History of the Church moreover proves, that whenever the Lord has granted any great deliverances to His servants, whenever the pure spirit of the Gospel has been received among Christians, these events have been prepared, and as it were announced beforehand, by the fraternal feelings which the faithful have mutually cherished, and by the humble and fervent prayers which they have united to pour out before God. It is, in truth, impossible that prayer should have place where languor and disunion prevail: prayer and charity, on the contrary, mutually awaken, sustain, and promote each other; and the success which awaits them is unlimited. After illustrating these just observations by the late increase of religious zeal in our own country and other parts of Christendom, it is added How sublime is that spectacle, which occasions joy in heaven, and awakens groans in hell!-multitudes of Christians redeemed by the blood of Christ, prostrated at the same hour at the foot of the Cross, in countries far separated from one another; asking, for the sake of the sufferings of the Son of God, the salvation of their kind; and beseeching the God of the New Covenant for the accomplishment of those prophecies, which concern the kingdom of Christ and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on all the children of men! Werejoice greatly in the establishment of this Society; not only on account of the aid which it will render to the Cause of Heathen Missions, but for the sake of France itself: for this Institution will serve, in connection with the Bible Society, as a centre of union to pious Pro. testants throughout France. Α considerable number have already united themselves with it, and Auxiliary Societies are springing up in that Communion. All the exertions of the Protestant Churches of France in this cause will be abundantly repaid, as many examples testify, in a return of spiritual blessings on themselves. We may notice, in connection with this subject, two other Institutions recently formed in Paris, which, though rather literary than religious in their own immediate object, will yet, doubtless, become subservient to that great end, in reference to the world, which lies nearest to the hearts of sincere Christians. ASIATIC SOCIETY OF PARIS. Object of the Society. THIS Institution was formed in the earlier part of last year; and has for its main object the Encouragement of Oriental Learning. Its Secre tary is Mr. J. C. Abel Remusat, Professor of the Chinese Language. The connection of this Society with the object of Institutions more directly religious, is well stated in the following extract of a Letter from M. Remusat to the British and Foreign Bible Society: Amidst the helps of which it would be desirous of assuring itself, the Asiatic Society places in the first rank the concurrence of enlightened men of all na tions; and of those associations which are animated by a zeal similar to their own, for the progress of useful knowledge. Actuated by motives of a superior order, the Bible Society can only indirectly take a part in labours which have an object purely scientific and literary. Still, the progress which the knowledge of Asiatic Languages may make in Europe, cannot be, in its eyes, an indifferent object; and, if the zeal which it displays, to publish throughout the world the Sacred Books, contributes at the same time to make known a mul titude of idioms and of dialects which appear to be concealed from the investigation of the learned, this same zeal will find a powerful auxiliary in the li terary ardour which will in some measure prepare its way, by facilitating the study of those languages in which the Word of God will ultimately appear. Two Societies, whose views have so much analogy, must find, in mutual correspondence, advantages which I need not enumerate. I have only to fulfil the wishes of that body whose sentiments I am appointed to transmit to |