you may not both be utterly ruined." I replied, in presence of the whole assembly, " I cannot, neither will I suffer myself to be diverted from what I have just told you." The constables then brought in the irons, and with great trembling, chained me hand and foot; some of them even bewailed my fate with tears, because they knew that I was cast into prison without a just cause. My sentence being, that I should be cast into a dark hole under the wall of the castle, some of my fellow coachmen ran on before, and threw some straw and hay into the dungeon, that I might not be chilled by the cold and damp ground. I accordingly entered with a courageous and cheerful heart; and enjoying the Saviour's presence in the most powerful manner during the night, I felt as happy there, as though I had been in heaven.

Brother Martin Hadwig and myself being daily compelled to shift our quarters, I invariably received the worst treatment. Whenever I was permitted to be in the room, to which all my adversaries had an indiscriminate access, I was sure to be laid in the stocks at night. I was often beaten with a stick, stabbed with a sword, and treated in the most cruel manner, particularly when, in reply to their disdainful inquiries, I either gave them a pointed answer, or held my peace. After the lapse of a few days, when we received but a few morsels of bread and a little water daily, I felt very hungry. Being again put into the dungeon, into which a person could scarcely creep, through a little door, which had a small hole in it, just large enough to admit a hand, I met with the following incident: The road passing by the dungeon, a stranger, unknown to me, came to this door, and spoke a great deal to me, the meaning whereof, however, I could not make out, not understanding his language. Finding that I was unable to answer his questions, he thrust a long piece of bread through the hole in the door, so that I was enabled to satisfy the cravings of hunger. He then left me, and went his way. Such incidents tended greatly to add vigour to my faith and dependence upon the providential care of my Saviour. At one time, when I was led out of the dungeon, looking down upon my feet, I perceived, that the padlock attached to my right leg had opened of itself, which greatly surprised me. Fearing, however, the jailor might charge me with having opened it, and on that account order me to be whipped, I stooped down, unperceived by him, and closed it again. It, however, immediately occurred to me, whether this might not possibly be a token of our being shortly set at liberty.

Some days after, on the 1st of May, the lords commissioners all met again, in order to examine us in the evening. It being the memorial day of St. Philip and St. James, they went to church to hear mass read and a sermon preached. Brother Martin Hadwig being in the room at that time, and having a guard with him, he requested permission to leave it. The guard, knowing he was closely fettered, suffered him to go, while he staid in the room, smoking a pipe of tobacco. It is worthy of remark, that just at that time, they had taken the chains and locks from our hands. Brother Hadwig having to pass by my dungeon, stopped, and inquired, through the hole of the little door, "how I did?" I replied, " I think we are this day to leave the prison." "What!" exclaimed he, " we are both chained at our feet-the doors are all bolted-my guard is sitting up stairs; and, besides all this, here lies a large padlock before your door, of the size of a man's fist." I replied, "all this matters nothing, for I had an impression last night, that we should this day escape out of prison; and I still have the same impression. Do you just try, whether you cannot open the padlock, with your hands; for then the business will soon be done." He did so-laid hold of the lock and happily succeeded in opening it. "Well, brother," said I, "now come down to me, and sit down, and I will try whether I cannot draw your boots, chains and all from your legs." I tried, and with much ado I pulled them off. He then did the same to me; and although the skin came along with the boots, we still got rid of the irons. We threw the fetters into the dungeon, took the boots into our hands, and crept out of the hole. Now indeed we were rid of our fetters, and close confinement; but the gates were locked, and yard and castle were surrounded by a wall, several cubits high, so that we saw no further way for escape. At last we discovered that some carpenters, who had been at work there, had at one place piled up the chips against the wall. We mounted this pile, and with much ado, scaled the wall, from the top of which we leaped down into the morass of the ditch. A little girl had all the while been watching us. As we passed her I said to her, " if you will hold your tongue, I will give you a piece of gingerbread on our return." She, however, when she saw us leap from the wall, ran and told the guard of our elopement. He immediately posted to the church, where, on hearing the news, Divine Service was instantly broke up, and our enemies set out full speed on horseback with greyhounds in pursuit of us. Having run about two miles, we entered a forest, when, looking around, we beheld our pursuers almost at our heels.

Fortunately for us, however, a man came along the road from Jagerndorf, and having passed him, we altered our course, and struck into the bushes on the left. This man was presently attacked by the hounds, by which means we gained upon our enemies in the new course we had entered upon. The hounds then quitting the man, followed his track in the road, and the horsemen galloped after them. Thus, under the protection of our dear heavenly Father, we effected our escape from them. With what praise and gratitude we spent the day, and how happy we felt in our minds, I shall never forget, all the days of my life.*

As it is recorded of Abraham, Heb. xi. 8. "That he went out, not knowing whither he went;" so we likewise journeyed, we knew not whither. Not knowing where any of God's children resided-having never heard of the congregations of the United Brethren not having one farthing in our possession, and being likewise meanly clad, we were for these reasons compelled to hide ourselves in the woods. After the lapse of several days, being very hungry, I went into a mill, and begged of a woman a piece of bread. To my surprise, she gave me half a loaf of bread and some butter. I am confident, that our dear Lord, according to his promise, Matt. x. 42, will have amply rewarded the woman for her kindness. On my return to Brother Hadwig, he shared my joy, and with tears of gratitude to our Lord, we enjoyed the blessing.

(To be continued.)

* It has ever since, to the last year of his life, been his unalterable custom, to celebrate the aniversary of his miraculous escape and delivery, as a day of public as well as private thanksgiving to the Lord, among his brethren.

REV. W. WARD AND THE SERAMPORE MISSION.

To the Editor of the Christian Herald.

SIR-There was published a few weeks ago in the Commercial Advertiser, of this city, two pieces against the character of the Rev. W. Ward, one of the missionaries from Serampore, with answers by Divie Bethune and Wm. Colgate.

It is believed that the cause of truth and of missions would be promoted, and that the subscribers to the Herald, generally, would be highly gratified, in giving those pieces and their answers a more extensive circulation, through the medium of your very useful and excellent periodical publication.

New-York, Jan. 22, 1822.

MESSRS. EDITORS,

SEVERAL SUBSCRIBERS.

From the Reformer.

HAVING lately read several publications, in which are given an account of the plans and inventions of the Romish priests to get money out of the people, I was struck with the great similarity between their disposition and practices, and that of many of our protestant teachers in the present day. For, like the Romish priests, they can never get enough money out of the people; and it is always solicited under the plausible pretence of doing good to their souls, and promoting the cause and kingdom of Christ.

I would ask, what right or authority has any one to say, that the Saviour demands people to commit property into the hands of men, to carry into effect their expensive and ambitious plans. Christ directed the young man to sell his property and give to the poor, and the apostle made collections in the churches for the poor saints at Jerusalem; but no where in all the New Testament can an instance be produced, that either Christ or the Apostles required people to give their money, or made collections to assist in the promulgation of the gospel. When Jesus Christ sent forth his disciples to preach, he furnished them with no money, nor did he ever represent it as necessary to promote the kingdon of grace and righteousness on the earth. Whenever money is made an auxiliary for promoting the interests of the Redeemer's kingdom, it becomes emphatically the root of evil and the destruction of true piety, as experience has sufficiently shown.

I will next notice that grand Circular of Mr. Ward, the Missionary from Serampore, addressed to the people of the United States. After stating the great antiquity of the Hindoo religion-that the Veda was written before the time of David, and that this superstition, in one form or another, is now professed by 500,000,000 of the human family, &c. &c. he then proceeds to inform us, that Dr. Carey and his colleagues have commenced a native missionary college at Serampore, for "illuminating India by its own converted and educated population." In order to induce us to give our money cheerfully, he says, it will be much less expense to convert them in this way than by foreign missionaries; observing: "A native may be supported in this college for forty-five dollars a year;" and asks, " to what higher purpose could a Christian devote forty-five dollars, than to prepare such intaneresting substitute in a Heathen land?" He then adds: " to form a fund for giving in this college divine knowledge to the native evangelists, he has visited the United States;" and concludes in this pathetic strain :

"By all that is, degrading and deplorable in the present moral circumstances, and by all that is tremendous in the future prospects, of 150,000,000 of beings equally rational and immortal with ourselves-by the cries of all these dying infants-by the sufferings and whitening bones of all these pilgrims-by the anguish of all these victims of superstition on the swinging-post, with their pierced tongues, their bleeding sides, their scorched feet-by the untimely deaths of all these unhappy beings drowned in the Ganges, and by the groans of all the dying on its banks-by the screams of these seven hundred widows convulsed with agony in the flames of the funeral pile, and by the tears and misery of the thousands of orphans surrounding these horrible fires-in the name of all these millions of interesting youths rising up in the most deplorable ignorance-of these 75,000,000 of females, soliciting human and divine knowledge at our hands and of the whole population of India-in the name of the Great Philanthropist; and by all that is civilizing, moralizing, con

soling and redeeming in Christianity-the missionary from Serampore makes his appeal to all that is Christian in the United States; and present appearances indicate, that this appeal will not be

made in vain."

as they This surely is a very high wrought appeal. But is it a fact, that these missionaries are as disinterestedly zealous for the salvation of those "poor Heathens," pretend? I think every candid person, that will take the trouble to compare their professions, and their conduct, must say, No. They inform us, that a "native brother and his family may live comfortably, for sixty-five dollars a year; but a missionary with a thousand dollars a year, will often find himself straitened." This vast difference in expense, must arise from the extravagant living and attendance of the foreign missionary, which the native brother lives comfortably without.

Mrs. Harriet Newell, that missionary martyr, about whom there has been so much said in this part of the country, has given the most particular and candid account of the magnificence of the buildings, and the voluptuous manner in which the missionaries at Serampore live, that I have seen. It ought to be noted that the Missionaries have purchased a large real estate, at Calcutta and Serampore, and it seems that Dr. Carey has a house at each place. Mrs. Newell, in her account, says:

"Yesterday afternoon we left the vessel, and were conveyed in a Palanquin through crowds of Hindoos to Dr. Carey's. Calcutta houses are built almost enWe were affectirely of stone. They are very large and airy. Dr. Carey's house appeared like a palace to us. He keeps a large number of Hindoo servants. tionately received by the good Dr. Carey, at his mansion at Calcutta, and treated with the greatest hospitality. Imagine to yourself a large stone house, with six lofty spacious keeping and lodging rooms, with the same number of unimproved rooms below;-such is the building. Imagine a small bald-headed man of sixty; such is the one whose name will be remembered to the latest generation. He is now advanced to a state of honour, with six thousand dollars a year. We accepted his invitation to visit the mission family at Serampore-took a boat, and, at eleven the next evening, reached the happy dwelling of these friends of Immanuel. Here peace and plenty dwell, and we almost forget that we are in a land of pagan darkness. This is the most delightful place I ever saw. Here the missionaries enjoy all the comforts of life. Servants are numerous. The mission-house consists

of four large commodious buildings, Dr. Carey's, Dr. Marshman's, Mr Ward's, and the common house. In the last, we are accommodated with two large spacious rooms, with every convenience we could wish. It has eight rooms on the floor, the two above mentioned, with two other lodging rooms, the dining hall, a large elegant chapel, and two large libraries. The garden is large, and much more elegant than any I ever saw in America."

Now if the sole object of these missionaries had been honour and self-aggrandizement, could they have pursued any other course, that would have gained them so much popularity, and enabled them to wallow in such luxury and pride? It appears to me, there needs but the bare recital of the facts, to prove their motives to every candid thinking person.

There has been much, very much said about the great benefit arising to the "poor Heathen children," from the schools which these missionaries have set up, and especially from Dr. and Mrs. Marshman's. And there has been societies formed of little children in this country, for the purpose of raising money, to assist in defraying the expenses of these schools; and sc infatuated have a number of parents been, within my acquaintance, that they have considered all their small children, even those not a year old, as members this society, had their names enrolled, and actually paid from half a cent to a cent a week, to assist in educating those poor Hindoe children. Now let us hear what Mrs. Newell says about these schools, and no friend to missionaries can dispute her statement. In speaking of them, she says:

"Mr. and Mrs. Marshman have large schools of English and half English children-about eighty in both schools. The boys are instructed in Chinese and other languages. These children all eat with us in the hall." Here it seems is a regular boarding school, of the children of Englishmen who have come and settled here, for the purpose of traffic and gain, and who, no doubt, are able, and do pay, a liberal sum for their board and tuition. Benedict, in his history of the Baptists, speaking of the income of this school, as an apology, says, that "it belongs to the common cause," e," and that "the whole family, as well as the boarders, eat at a common table." A number of the principal Englishmen, and some of the missionaries, have taken the Hindoo women to wife, and their children are called half English, and of course not Heathen. Mrs. Newell, in speaking of Mrs. Marshman's part of the school, says, " Mrs. Marshman has a lovely school of English young ladies, where they are instructed in embroidery, working muslin, and various other things. Miss Susan Marshman, of fourteen, is studying Latin, Greek, and Hebrew." She says, "there is a charity school close by Dr. Carey's, in Calcutta, supported by subscription, managed by the Baptist Missionaries, consisting of about 100 Portuguese children." And do the people of this country, who have given their money, to educate the poor Heathen children in India, indeed know, that such are the great missionary schools there, and that not one Heathen child belongs to them? Yet this surely was the case when Mrs. Newell was there; for although she says, that the Hindoos were as thick as bees, and gives a particular account of the schools, and what kind of children composed them, yet she says not one word about a Hindoo or Heathen child belonging to any of them, which she surely would, had that have been the fact. Pray, what has embroidery, working muslin, studying Latin, Greek, or Hebrew, to do with christianizing the Heathen?

And now let me ask in the face of modest candour, whether missionaries living in such princely style in the midst of a Heathen land, and receiving the enormous sums, of from nine hundred to six thousand dollars a year to support their living, are entitled to belief, when they talk of their disinterested zeal for the salvation and christianizing of the Heathen; when themselves declare, that a native brother and his family can live comfortably on sixty-five dollars a year? Were they sincere, surely they would be willing to live thus comfortably, and then from the surplus of their great salaries, they might support at the rate of forty-five dollars a year, as many Hindoos, as their new college would contain, and thus have saved the great Mr. Ward the danger, trouble, and expense of going to England and America to collect thousands of dollars for their support. But with these facts before us, surely comment is unnecesary.*

From the Commercial Advertiser.

The receipt of ten dollars is acknowledged enclosed by the Rev. Francis Wayland, jun. of Boston. It was put into the contribution box of the First Baptist Church in that town on the envelope was written, "for the Education Fund of the college of Serampore."

The subscribers, whilst acknowledging the receipt of the above donation, feel it their duty to state a few facts to vindicate the character of the Rev. William Ward, of Serampore, from the various reports put in circulation against him. It was but a few days since they were informed by a most respectable member of the society of Friends in this city, that he had heard it confidently asserted in a circle of gentlemen, that Mr. Ward had carried off and misapplied the money collected by him in this country. On the contrary, so punctilious was Mr. Ward on this subject, that he drew on England for the amount of his expenses, in order that every dollar so generously contributed in the United States, might be invested here. He appointed gentlemen in the several towns he visited to receive money for him, and the whole amount was by his orders invested in the Canal six per cent. loan of the State of New-York, in the names of Robert Ralston and William Staughton of Philadelphia, and Divie Bethune and William Colgate of New-York, as trustees; the interest to be remitted to India towards the support of the Native Missionary College at Serampore. A charge has also been brought against Mr. Ward and his apostolic brethren, Drs. Carey and Marshman, of wishing to appropriate to their own use, or retain under their own separate control, the funds of the Baptist Missionary Society of England. The true state of the case in this: these three emi

* NOTE-To cap the climax of the proceedings of the three famous missionaries at Serampore, it now remains for us to state from information lately obtained-that Carey, Marshman, and Ward, have, by a solemn Act, pronounced themselves disconnected from, and independent of the society in England; and declared the premises at Scrampore, to be their own exclusive property. They have cut off all the other missionaries from any participation with them; four of whom have formed a separate union at Calcutta, styled the Missionary Society, auxiliary to the Parent Society in England. This surprising procedure, has excited general disgust among the other Baptist missionaries, and must astonish every one who hears of it. It is well known, that the premises, as well as these missionaries themselves, have been considered as the property of the society in England; who have expended thousands and tens of thousands on this splendid establishment-the extent and style of which, have exceeded the expectations of every one who has visited it. It appears, it presented a spectacle too tempting to these missionaries, to be viewed as not their own; and in the face of the world, they have fully exhibited their true character, and put a blot on the plans of modern missionaries, which it will be difficult to efface. Such a proceeding speaks for itself-and of the fact, the reader need entertain no doubt, though but few in this country are apprized of it, and those few are disposed to keep it concealed. How much has been said, and what applause has been rendered to these three missionaries! But who now, except themselves, will presume to stand forth in their defence?-Editors of the Reformer.-[Philadelphia.]