missions in the retirement of a lonely glen, and was de- lighted to find that their hearts also were drawn to the same subject. These three were soon joined by Messrs. Judson, Newell, Nott, and Hall, the whole of whom of- fered thenisi Ives lor mission work, and the American Board (d' 1 "As it \
.Miss
dt(
)rtbwith established, iind the institution on a broad ■ the plan of the London Mis- >ionarv s,„i,'tv, Mr. .Iiid-oii was despatched to England lo iininiie inlo'ihc wcnkiiiL' of tlial institution. The board \\a' at iii>t apjiointed by the General Association of Mas- saelui-cii^, wliich is Congregational; but since the first ele( (ion there has been no preference given to any Chris- tian se't. In 1S31, of 62 corporate members, 31 were Pres- byterians, 24 Congregatioualists, 6 Reformed Dutch, and 1 Associate Reformed. Of the 79 ordained n^s^ionaries of that period, 30 were Presbyterians, 2 Kelbinud Dutch, and the others Congregatioualists. The missions are not under the control of ecclesiastical sects, but are governed as communities, where the majority of the votes of the missionaries is decisive. Nor are they regarded as per- manent, but as established to plant churches, and to train them to self-support, with a view to a still wider dift'usion ofthe Gospel. Hence, at an early period, seminaries were o|)ened for the training of native teachers and preachers, and also for the education of girls who might engage ac- tively iu foreign service, or prove suitable partners to mis- sicmaries. From the very commencement tliis society was liberally supported, and jiroved very sncces.sful.
"The first field of labor oeruided by the agents ofthe American Boanl of Foieijn Mi^Miui^ was India. The Rev. Messrs. Juds.m, .Nnii, New.di, Hall, and IJire ar- rived in Calcutta in June, isl-j, mid were fidlowed by other laborers iu a few months afterwards. Numerous difficulties met them on the very threshold of the en- terprise. The country was involved in war; no mis- sionary operations were allowed bv soveniment : Messrs. Judson and Rice joiiieil the l■,apti-l^. and yU: Newell pro- ceeded to Maiuiliiis. where hi- wile and child found an
At le
th. h
early grave
meiits and delays, the way oin-ned for the commencement ot nii-siouary hibor in India, and a station was formed by Mes-rs. Hall and Nott iu Bombay in 1S14. Afterwards th' work was extended to Ahmednii-ntir, Satara, Kolapnr, Madura, Aieot, Madras, and oilier places, with a measure id^nree-- wliich more than comi)ensated for the early tri- als :ind bereavements which were endured. In 1817 a among the Cher-
ed bv this
Ml
ofthe i;
afterward.- bv .M. — ;-. Hall and \ lion was called I'.iainerd. and lie ofthe eel. d, rated ini--ionarics of several oiiier stations wi'ie iiltiin wt)rk was carried on lor inan\ ' kees, Choctaws, Osages, (_liii a- Ojibwas, Dakotas, Abenaquis, I'a of Nortii American Indians. In commenced in Syria. The first Rev. Messrs. Parsons and Fisk, who ;
ined
lintment nnniths iins. The first sta- ond Fdiot. in honor er time-. To these
annni-- the Chero- (reidcs, Ultawas, ■s, and other tribes the uood work was -ioiiaries were the
rived iu Smvrna on
Jan. 15. They were followed by other zealous laborers, who, amid many difficulties, succeeded iu their literary and evangelical labors among the Armenians, Nestorians, and others, as well as could be expected. In 1828 the missionaries extended their labors to Greece, and shortly afterwards missions were commenced in China and India. In 1S33 the Rev. J. L.Wilson was npivnuted to Cajje Pal- mas, in Western Africa, and in the fnlowiiiL' year the Rev iMe>-rs. (.roul, Chaiiipion, and Adam- wn,- ^ent out to labor amon- llie Zulu-, on the -oiilli-east<a-n coast of the great African .-. nl inent. Ibil jierliaps the most re- markable and siii'ci-.-nd of Ihe society-,, mis-ions was that which was e-tabli-hed in li.e Sandwicli I-lands iu isl'.t. The Rev. Me-srs. Ilin-ham and 'I'liurstoii Avere the first who were sent out to the Pacific, but they were ac- companied by a farmer, a physician, a mechanic, a cate- chist, and a"printer, with their wives, the band in all amountin>: to seventeen souls, including John Houoree, Thomas lloper, and William Temoe, native youths who had been educated iu America. On their arrival they found that the native idols had already been destroyed and abolished by public authority, and the people were thus in a measure prepared to receive the Gospel, untram- melled by those attachments to long-cherished systems which in other instances have proved such a serious bar- rier to the dissemination of divine truth. From that day to this the mission to the Sandwich Islands has continued to advance iu all its departments. The Scriptures have been translated into the native langnaue of tlie people, sehoids have been established for the trainimr ofthe rising generalion.and thousands of converted natives have been united in Chan b fellowship, so that the whole population of those l)eautiful islands are now at least nominally Christian.
",l;((rr/c„/), BaptiM Missionary Societii.— This society was established as early as 1814, but it did not receive its present name till 1846. It was first called the Baptist Tri- ennial Convention for Missionary Purposes, and was com- • menced in Philadelphia, but afterwards transferred to Boston. It belongs to and is almost exclusively sup-
IMISSIONS
366
MISSIONS
ported by the Calvinistic Baptists of the Northern States, t There were some interestiiii^ circnmstunces connected j with the early hif^tory of this inp;titittion which deserve a passiii!? notice. The Revs. A. Jiidson and L. Kice, of the American Board of Foreij^n Mii^sious, nnderwent a chan^'e of views with regard to the subjects and mode of baptism when on their voyage to India, and having resolved to join the liaptist denomination, they were immersed by the Kev. Mr. Ward at Serampore, soon after their arrival in Calcutta. Tliis circumstance was the means of stirring lip the missionary spirit amon;: tli.- H;i|>(ists in Ameri'-n, and of ilu' forinatiou of a socici)- lor ihr Miii|Mii-t c,|" ihc new coiiviMts in their foreign lalioi-, an.l lur ihr |ii(.|i,i_M- tioii of the (iospel in heathen laii'l>. 'Ihc !..-> iliiis sus- tained by one society was gain to muoiIrm-, and resulted in a hirge increase of missionary ngcucy and in a wide ex- tension of the means of rcliirious instruction. This soci-